Kamla: We will support anti-gang legislation

THE OPPOSITION will support the Government on the anti-gang legislation once there is a two and a half year sunset clause, said Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

She was speaking during the Monday Night Forum held at Don Miguel Hindu School, Port of Spain.

On the Government and Opposition meeting on the anti-gang legislation legislation she reported that Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi wrote a draft bill and made all the amendments the Opposition had suggested but the sticking point remained the sunset clause. She stressed they could not give that kind of power to law enforcement officers for any length of time. She said the Government had asked for five years and the Opposition two years and then 18 months but she was now willing to compromise for two and a half years.

She said while law enforcement has to do their best they must also guard against abuse. She added there are many good policemen but there are also corrupt ones. She said there needs to be monitoring and scrutiny of the use of the anti-gang legislation and questioned why Government was afraid to have the police stand up to scrutiny.

"What is unreasonable about that?"

Persad-Bissessar said Government believes the legislation is important and is "hanging their hats" on it but in her view it was not so important. She noted that Government was waiting to bring the bill back in the next parliamentary session in September but the standing orders allow it to be brought back in this current session once there is agreement.

"Let's get it done at the earliest opportunity. After that we have the serious business of getting crime down."