President of the Prisons Officers Association, (POA) Ceron Richards yesterday called on Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to remove his National Security Minister, Edmund Dillon for failing to address concerns raised by the association.
At a press conference called outside the Maximun Security Prison (MSP) yesterday Richards, surrounded by officers attached to the prison, said for the past four years the prison has had no alarm system, which makes the situation a "death trap". There have been numerous calls he said, to Dillon's office to address that major concern, among other concerns, and to date nothing has been done.
"We have aMaximum Security Prison key and fundamental to the security of any prison in any part of the world - worse yet for a Maximum Security Prison - is a functioning alarm system. Would you believe that overthe past year and more we have this prison operating without an alarm system? If there is an issue, God forbid, there is an incident occurring in thatprison the officers hasno way of notifying or raising an alarm" Richards said.
Other officers told the T&T Guardian that in their training over two decades ago, they were instructed that in the time of distress to always use the alarm. Now, they say, each time they come to work they wonder if it will be their last. Added to that, there is no way of being innovative as the prison now has cell phone jammers even if they decided to sneak in their cell phones to use as their personal alarm system.
Richards added: "We have a minister sitting in his office on Abercromby Street and he is very comfortable, Mr Dillon seems to be rather comfortable with the situation. So what does the brigadier want, does he want officers to start walking out of the prison? What does the ministry want? What does the Government want? What reaction do they want from the officers? Is it the Government's view that officers should take money out of their own pockets to purchase an alarm system for the MSP? Is better the PM move in and put him (Dillon) in sanitation or some other ministry."
The officers added that MSP was not built to house remanded prisoner and is now overcrowded with both convicted and remanded inmates who are separated by a fence. Richards said the situation at MSP was "reaching critical mass" and at any time there could be an explosion.
Richards said there was a one off issuing of stab proof vests and batons along with other desperately needed tools for prison officers to properly fulfil their mandate. The investment was made following the 2013 murder of off-duty prion office Andy Rogers. A nine-member special committee was set up after the killing which triggered a chain of events, including a protest from prisons officers and riots amongst the prisoners.