Former UNC Minister and MP Dr Tim Gopeesingh has called on the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader to put their political differences aside to chart an urgent policy paper and tangible solutions to deal with the nation’s runaway crime problem.
In a statement issued yesterday, Dr Gopeesingh said: “The brutal attacks and murders of Andrea Bharatt and many other women underscore the horrendous crime reality that has been stalking our nation in recent years.” The former Education Minister said in the mid-2000s, then Prime Minister Patrick Manning, and then Opposition Leader, Basdeo Panday, had famously put their very strong political differences aside to hold bipartite meetings over the spiralling crime rate. He said this was aimed at arriving at a consensus in the crucial Constitutional Amendment Act (2006) regarding the Police Service Commission.
The former MP said, “What is needed now to counteract this is urgent legislative reform and attendant policy implementation by the Government of the day, with the Opposition playing a very crucial role in spearheading this national lobby.”
Dr Gopeesingh said the President must also get involved.
He said, “The time for urgent action on this barbaric crime spate is NOW. Our nation is in a crisis state, and our women and girls must no longer be the tragic collateral damage of this reign of unprecedented, brutal criminal terror.”