Alexander: Law coming to make it mandatory to carry identification

GOVERNMENT is moving to make it mandatory for all citizens to walk with a form of identification at all times in an effort for the police to enforce proposed changes which would raise the legal age limit to consume alcohol, use marijuana and gamble.

Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander said on July 10 that the enforcement of the new laws was the responsibility of the police.

He said the Prime Minister had informed him of the proposal before she spoke at a political platform on July 7, in Penal. The PM proposed increasing the legal age to drink alcohol from 18 to 21 and increasing the age to smoke marijuana and gamble from 18 to 25.

"If you tell me you are 16 years old, I could say I’m 40 years old, but I am 17, so some people, more so, must walk with some form of ID so police can ascertain your age and your address. So it’s something we are looking to address.”

He said the new laws will make it easier to detect minors who consume alcohol.

“The AG is having discussions with respect to that issue."

Alexander updated the media following his participation in the 49th Caricom Heads of Government meeting in Jamaica.

“Our discussions included gangs, murders, and women abuse, among other things. There are some things I would not divulge because they concern the national security of both nations. We came up with some solutions to crime.

“I was guided as to some projects I should choose and how to make a sustainable impact as we go forward. We also discussed economics, security, effective policing, swift justice and crime prevention through social development and rehabilitation programmes.”

Alexander said some of the programmes were not new, but had been renamed. He said others had been tried before but had been set aside owing to a lack of vision by the PNM.

“We will re-introduce it, but it will come at a cost, because what could have been done four years ago is more costly to do now.”

He said one such programme was having technology in police vehicles, which will allow officers to access information in real time.

“We need to understand that technology is the way to go. While my colleagues (at the meeting) were speaking about climate change, we were speaking about crime change in the region.

“One of the things I would have learned while I was there was how important technology is the role technology plays in this fight against crime, because Jamaica had some of the best technology. Having technology, you will realise the sustainable impact it will have on your community, on your country as it relates to crime.

“You realise the gangs, and the warfare involved in gangs, their intent and purpose is to disrupt and continue that fear of crime in and around communities. We also understand that the TT police service, for years, we have seen people enter this country legally and illegally, an increase in population; however, the size and strength of the police service has never increased.”

He said to get the desired impact, the police must be visible and able to challenge people. He said he wanted to reignite the collaborative effort between the police and the defence force. He said there were also plans to join the Regional Security System, based in Barbados.

He said his responsibility as line minister was to provide the police service with the technical, manpower and vehicular resources needed to fight crime.

“If the police control the streets, the police can control crime.”

Alexander said the National Operations Centre was under-utilised, but he intended to change this.

“We have to get it up and running again. We need to incorporate it in the system totally. There must be a collaborative effort between the joint command, the police command centre, and all the command centres in the ten divisions.

“That is how I see technology fitting into all of this. A man who doesn’t see technology in policing now is not a police officer. This includes body cameras. Technology is where we’re going. Technology would include body cameras, the right equipment on police vehicles, etc.

“The day would come, and this is not an ‘I had a dream’ moment, where the police station should no longer have books available to them. The police officer going out should not have a desk diary in his hands. Those days have come and gone. Possibly the last regime has left us behind, and now we have to fix all of these things to get our team up and running for them to even look professional in the execution of their duties.”

Asked whether the officers graduating from the Police Academy were equipped to deal with law enforcement challenges and technology in the modern world, Alexander said he knew the staff were well-rounded and continuously trained.

“We are looking to train officers in areas where technology has brought evidence to the court successfully.”

He said part of the reason for the low detection rate was the unwillingness on the part of citizens to report incidents due to fear.