Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar:
Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith is to be commended for his work in revitalising the fight against crime.
After years of inactivity from the several Ministers of National Security under this PNM Government, it is heartening to see the commissioner lead the TTPS in taking the fight to the criminal element.
In a few short months, the country has seen visible and sustained efforts from our law enforcement officers under his leadership.
I wish him continued success in leading the TTPS in the fight against crime, and, to the restoration of many of the initiatives that were put in place or under development when he served in the administration, I led.
Stuart Young, Minister of National Security:
The Government took a strategic decision to support Mr Gary Griffith’s appointment as the Commissioner of Police, and under the leadership of the Honourable Prime Minister, submitted to the House of Representatives that we would support his appointment as Commissioner of Police. All of the government MPs in the Lower House voted in support of Gary Griffith and not a single one of the Opposition MPs supported Griffith’s appointment as Commissioner of Police. He was good enough to be Mrs Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s security adviser and Minister of National Security but the UNC did not think Mr Griffith was good enough to be the country’s Commissioner of Police. The Government appointed Commissioner Griffith and the Prime Minister around the same time appointed me as Minister of National Security, and from his appointment to now, Commissioner Griffith and I have been working very well together.
Griffith has brought a new dynamic to the TTPS and for the first time in almost six years the TTPS has permanent leadership at the helm and it has made an immediate difference, just as this Government knew it would.
It has been a pleasure working with Gary and I believe that our relationship will make positive differences to the fight against crime in T&T.
Griffith’s addition to the national security team has made a difference. The TTPS having leadership and his no-nonsense and energetic approach combined with an insistence from National Security that intelligence and resources be shared and not siloed has produced positive results.
I have seen a new energy and the morale rising in the TTPS and I commend the men and women in the TTPS for the work that they do and their support for Commissioner Griffith.
Gary’s energy, experience, willingness to work as part of a team, fearlessness and desire to succeed have positively impacted the fight against the scourge of crime. He is fully committed and wants to turn things around.
I believe that the effects of the sharing of intelligence and other resources combined with the use of more technology across the whole of the national security apparatus will produce additional positive results; some of which have been seen in the past couple of months.
The commissioner and the TTPS that he leads have the full support of the Government, and in particular my support, and I look forward to continuing to work with Commissioner Griffith and the men and women of the TTPS as we try to combat all types of crime and to take the fight to the criminals, including, the white collar criminals in the coming months and years.
Wayne Sturge—attorney and former UNC senator:
How do I rate his performance? Asking me to rate his performance at this time is like asking me to comment on a marathon after the first half mile which makes me wonder whether this is the media enabling him in another one of his PR spectacles, particularly at a time when the public is inebriated with his big talk.
But I will give him full marks for PR and Robber Talk, he understands the value of that, perception to most people is reality and the public can be forgiven as mobs are not known to engage in any kind of objective analysis.
He asked to be judged on the murder rate and if we are to take him up on that he has proven himself an abject and miserable failure. He has done nothing in terms of prevention and with all his mouthing has not showcased anything to suggest that he can significantly increase the detection rate for murder.
As far as drug busts are concerned if you are not careful you may very well get the impression that large and frequent raids are as a direct result of his work and weren't happening before.
Likewise kidnapping, he is always there up front and centre when there is a success, when the reality is that kidnapping became largely defunct since 2007/8 mainly due to the acquisition of advanced crime detection technology which means that recent detections have very little to do with him and more to do with the institutional capabilities of the AKU. But there are several other missing persons whom we either never find or who turn up dead, it would be good if he can update the media about these with the same vigour and regularity.
It is obvious to those with sobriety that his media circus is designed to take attention away from his abysmal performance on the murder rate upon which he asked to be judged. In this regard, I think the stark failure of all previous police commissioners is that they didn't turn up for photo ops for every single police success.
In the end, I wish him well as an improved detection rate benefits everyone.
FIXIN T&T head, Kirk Waithe:
The enthusiasm brought to the office of the Commissioner of Police by Gary Griffith is to be welcomed as a much-needed boost to the morale of police officers. The public’s support for his initiatives is a measure of the desperation for safety and security. That being said, FIXIN’ T&T is alarmed by the Commissioner’s excessive bravado and lack of restraint as evident in references to individuals as “cockroaches”, among other things.
We acknowledge the successful extraction of kidnap victims and the high profile seizures of drugs and guns in his first 90 days in office but note that while CoP Griffith is the leader, face and voice of these success stories, the growing number of missing and murdered persons appear to be for the account of other police officers.
FIXIN' T&T fully supports CoP Griffith's positions on polygraph testing within the Police Service, accountability for the care of vehicles and his actions against alleged rogue officers. However, FIXIN' T&T takes serious issue with the commissioner’s propensity to publicly attack the character of any person or entity even remotely critical of his style and execution of duty.
While FIXIN’ T&T is heartened by the CoP’s recognition that safety and security are of paramount importance to all, we hope he will walk his talk by vigorously tackling the scourge of white-collar crime. We hold him to his promise to act against all wrong-doers regardless of who and where they are and await the outcome of police investigations into a number of matters, including those which may involve parliamentarians Marlene McDonald, Camille Robinson-Regis, Faris Al-Rawi, Rohan Sinanan and Gerald Ramdeen, to name a few. FIXIN’ T&T hopes that these investigations are receiving the full support of CoP Griffith as well as the required resources.
FIXIN’ T&T maintains that there are many more good than bad apples in our Police Service. We remain ready, willing and able to support the fight against crime. FIXIN’ T&T remains committed to truth and will continue to fearlessly hold all public officials to the most stringent of standards as we work effectively towards the realisation of a safe, secure, efficient and productive T&T.
David West, director of the Police Complaints Authority:
The holder of the Office of Commissioner of Police plays a crucial role in the maintenance of law and order in the country and I offer my full support to anyone committed to this purpose. In September 2018 a team from the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) had the opportunity to meet with newly appointed Commissioner of Police (CoP) Mr Gary Griffith and senior members of the Professional Standards Bureau and Police Complaints Division. During this meeting a number of issues that directly affected both the T&T Police Service and the PCA were reviewed and both the Commissioner and I agreed that issues relevant to both our operations will be addressed in order to chart a way forward.
It is noteworthy that the commissioner appears to be serious with regard to holding errant officers accountable for their activities and subsequently administering disciplinary action by means of tribunals and other administrative actions. In this way, the commissioner seems to be receptive to recommendations made by the PCA as per Section 21 (1) (d) of the PCA Act.
The commissioner has advocated for the use of body worn (BWCs) and the introduction of the use of non-lethal weapons with specific reference to tasers and pepper spray which I believe are steps in the right direction. In fact, the PCA has long been an advocate for the use of BWCs since BWCs emerged as an important tool with the potential to enhance transparency and accountability and to engender greater trust in police officers.
I would encourage the commissioner to take a special interest in matters pertaining to the treatment of police involved in fatal shootings; issues regarding the treatment and handling of mentally ill individuals and the behaviour of officers when dealing with issues of domestic violence.
Police Social and Welfare Association:
The association would have met with the Commissioner of Police, Mr Gary Griffith on diverse occasions both formal and informal.
During such time, the association found him to be extremely accommodating, open minded, professionally astute and welcoming to some of the novel proposal made by the association. As a matter of fact, in most instances the turn-around time for proposed items does not exceed one day, two for the most, on his delivery of requests made that are consistent with welfare.
The major things the association was able to accomplish with the Commissioner of Police in very short order were:
1. Consent and agreement on police identification cards, which has now been converted to police metal badges, which has successfully been actioned.
2. The consent and agreement of none lethal forms of weapons, such as, tasers, pepper spray and body cameras, which resulted in both the Commissioner of Police and the association petitioning the Minister of National Security for a change in uniforms and a request for none lethal weapons, which was read in Fiscal Budget 2018/2019 by the Minister of Finance, to be issued to officers in the new and upcoming year.
3. The acquiesce and roll out of concealed carry firearms, and a policy instalment for all officers under his command, affording them the protection of loved ones and themselves personally, assisting in blanket security coverage to the nation which has already yielded meaningful results.
4. The reshaping of the police image through trust and confidence, based on his cooperation of the brainchild of Mrs Nicole Dyer-Griffith and the association of the “I SuFind out how the business community gauges Gary's performance in Monday's Guardianpport Our Service (ISOS)” campaign, which has already emphatically and radically changed the face and image of the T&T Police Service to a positive one where confidence is being restored, and increasingly, citizens in the majority are beginning to trust the TTPS, which is a major boost to the inspiration and moral of the T&T Police Service.
The association by its own evaluation have assessed the Commissioner of Police and has given him two thumbs up. He has radically in the shortest possible time, reshape the image of the police service and gave every police officer a feeling of self-worth, a new identity, and hope.