St Augustine MP and Finance Minister Winston Dookeran yesterday called on the Opposition to join forces in the fight against the criminal elements, who have been reigning terror in the land. The call was made by Dookeran in the Parliament as the Opposition refused to support a three-month extension on the state of the emergency and relaxed curfew hours by the Government. Dookeran, who was one of the hostages in the 1990 attempted coup, which led to a state of emergency and imposed curfew, said there was no doubt in his mind that physical safety was the first priority of the State, on which the debate should be centred.
Instead, he said, the arguments by the Opposition were flawed and had degenerated into small politics. "They have argued that it (extension) will not work. They are trying to hold on to what was there before. When what was there before has us where we are today. No one has argued that the state of emergency and curfew will stop criminal activity. What it does is it gives us a start to deal with that problem." Noting that the Government expected a backlash from the criminals at some point as a result of the measures taken, Dookeran said the Government would take pre-emptive measures to stem this.
Dookeran said when Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, on August 21, informed the country that a state of emergency was going to take effect, the message sent was that "we must not surrender to the criminal elements in Trinidad and Tobago." Parliament and society, Dookeran said, must not surrender to criminals nor allow them to control our lives. Dookeran said there were some who wished to surrender to terrorism in and outside of the country, but noted that the People's Partnership Government would not do so. Dookeran said when President George Maxwell Richard signed the Emergency Proclamation, "It was to avert what could have been a rather distasteful and bloody situation."
During the debate, Dookeran said the Opposition questioned the Government's justification on the extension. He drew reference to Diego Martin Central and Diego Martin North/East MPs, Dr Amery Browne and Colm Imbert, who suggested that the state of emergency was called as a result of public discontent and rumblings in the labour movement. In its 15 months in office, Dookeran said the Government had always been able to confront the issues head-on. "We come up with the solutions and make it work." He insisted that this was the beginning of the answer to safety in T&T, stressing that far more responsibilities would face them now.