Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley says steps have been taken to authorise and begin to operationalise vetted units in the T&T Police Service (TTPS) to bring about better information-sharing with this country’s international partners, says Prime Minister Keith Rowley.
Rowley gave the information in Parliament yesterday during his reply to Opposition bencher Chaguanas West MP Dinesh Rambally’s query whether any progress has been made in addressing crime since the April 2023 Regional Crime Symposium at the Hyatt Regency.
Rowley said, “We have, as a consequence of the stance taken and matters ventilated at the symposium, been receiving much better co-operation from our international partners.”
He said that included tracking and preventing the illegal importation of firearms, making it more difficult for people to engage in that. T&T has also been receiving information that has been acted upon to tackle transnational organised crime in so far as it impacts the country’s borders and its interests.
“We also receive, on an ongoing basis, improved intelligence and training for our own law enforcement agencies and TTDF personnel. We’ve taken steps to authorise and begin to operationalise Vetted Units in the TTPS to bring about better information sharing with our international partners,” he said.
Last year, Rowley said Government was working on creating, with the assistance of the US government, vetted police units in the TTPS with special officers, to ensure that there were fewer corrupt police elements within the service.
Yesterday, Rowley added as he continued replying to Rambally’s question, “All of these activities flow from an understanding that T&T and our international partners are better off cooperating more closely than having our agencies which are dedicated to our national security working together as one unit in one common purpose.”
On whether Rowley was satisfied with the present state of crime, given all of the cooperation he’d referred to, Rowley said, “I don’t think anybody in T&T could say they’re satisfied with our experience with crime and criminal conduct in the country. What I can say is had these efforts not been put in place, it would have been far worse.”
Rambally then asked if Rowley would be removing the National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds anytime soon. Rowley quipped that Rambally was looking for “work”, but said, “there’s no vacancy here” (on Government’s side).
‘SSA review making
good progress’
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said that the review and audit within the Strategic Services Agency (SSA) was making good progress, but there was no deadline yet.
Rowley indicated this in Parliament yesterday following a query by Couva South MP Rudy Indarsingh. He’d asked whether the extensive review and audit of all personnel, equipment, and processes within the Strategic Services Agency (SSA) which were being carried out by retired Brigadier General Anthony Phillip- Spencer have been completed.
This was undertaken after SSA director Roger Best was sent on administrative leave in March. The National Security Council recommended to the Cabinet that the head of the SSA be replaced immediately and new leadership and management be installed. This, was after information was received from the TTPS.
Yesterday, Rowley said the very detailed work as described in Indarsingh’s question continued unabated and was making good progress.
“Given the nature of the exercise it would be quite inappropriate to give a deadline, we simply have to follow the evidence and treat with it as it goes—and that’s what’s happening,” Rowley added.