NTA leader's last call before election: Choose your leaders wisely

NATIONAL Transformation Alliance (NTA) political leader Gary Griffith said the people of Trinidad and Tobago should choose their leaders wisely. He said the party should be the choice for the undecided voters.

Speaking at the party’s final public meeting before the general election at its headquarters at the corner of Mt Lambert Circular and Eastern Main Road on April 23, Griffith said he was not speaking to the people who were blindly loyal to the PNM and the UNC.

“We are here to represent those people who are independent voters and thinkers, those who can analyse the different parties and say these are the best people not just to lead us but to serve us.

“You have to look at the people who have the experience and the character to lead the country. Be careful who you select in the next government.

“The one thing we are most concerned about in this country is national security. It is your most fundamental right, to live. By you supporting PNM or UNC or NTA, that’s not going to to help you. I’m asking the country, choose your leaders wisely. You have to look at the track record of the individuals and say whether we have the capability to make TT safe again.”

He said voters had a choice between the UNC, PNM, NTA and others.

“The UNC has formed a coalition with these smaller parties, but has manipulated the screenings so the others are contesting seats the UNC has never won. They have no chance to win those seats. If the UNC wins, there will be a UNC government, not a coalition.

“They will do to them what they did to the Congress of the People (COP) where they destroyed them and kicked them out of the government. They are using Progressive Empowerment Party (PEP) and COP to fool and manipulate the floating voters into thinking there is a coalition to get them to vote for them.”

Griffith also denounced people who said parties like NTA and Patriotic Front were vote splitters, as he said no party owned anyone’s vote.

He criticised alderman Paul Daniel-Nahous’ appearance on a UNC platform and said he hoped he would do the honourable thing and resign not only as an NTA member but as an alderman, as he would have gotten that position through votes from the NTA.

Griffith said he had drafted many of the crime plans currently being advertised by the UNC, including Ministries of Home Affairs and Defence. He criticised the UNC’s attitude towards giving out firearms, as he said his method included thorough investigation of an applicant’s background.

He said many initiatives in place currently were initiated by him, including the $1,000 payment to law enforcement, the $1 million for families, the Gender-based Violence Unit, the Child Protection Unit and others.

Griffith outlined some of the plans he had to fight crime, including upgrading the emergency response unit, including 999; revamping the GBVU and the Child Protection Units; forming a weaponised operation land force (WOLF) of the 1,000 best trained people in various law enforcement agencies in TT; enforcing use of body cameras; using the TT Defence Force in crime fighting; using the social media monitoring unit; increasing police academy intake; re-instating the energy sector security initiative, and others.

He said the NTA would treat government as a business, examining every cent spent to eliminate waste and corruption. He said based on his performance as police commissioner, he had the capability to run the government on the current budget.

Griffith said he intended to find ways to lift the standard of living for the ordinary citizen, including focusing on making primary healthcare more accessible so people can detect diseases like cancer, diabetes and heart disease before they become too hard to treat.

“I intend to unite this country. For too long, political parties have divided this country. I am here to find ways to make TT a better country.”