Amid record murder rate...Tobago MP Webster-Roy: Don't let negativity prevail

TOBAGO East MP and Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Gender and Child Affairs Ayanna Webster-Roy has appealed to all upstanding, right-thinking people of Tobago not to let negativity prevail.

She was speaking during the annual Republic Day Awards hosted by the Office of the Prime Minister – Central Administrative Services Tobago (OPM-CAST) on September 24 at the Delaford Community Centre.

She said the eastern end of the island is currently under threat.

“Yes, we are going through a difficult time in Tobago East, but we should never, ever allow a few to outshine the good work of the many,” Webster-Roy said.

On September 20, Tobago’s murder toll for the year climbed to 23 when 27-year-old Brandon Edwards of Lammy Road was shot dead near his home in Argyle.

According to police, around 10.03 pm, residents heard gunshots and found Edwards, a sanitation worker, lying unconscious near his home. He was a former Goodwood High School student.

On September 22, 32-year-old Nicholas "Daddy T" Mitchell, the father of one, became the island’s 24th murder victim after being shot at his home in Argyle. Mitchell’s mother, Ann Marie Mitchell, who was asleep upstairs, heard the gunshots and later found her son's body.

Webster-Roy commended the arms of the national security for working with young people.

“Thank you for your outstanding work. I want to say thank you to all NGOs, civil-society organisations working in the vineyard to ensure our young people, our youths, are kept off the streets and doing meaningful activities.

"But most importantly, for those of us who are upstanding, right-thinking citizens, I say we must not let the few outshine our good light,” the minister urged.