The Military-Led Academic Training Programme (MiLAT) continues to shape young minds across Trinidad and Tobago through powerful initiatives.
On Monday, the cadets took on a bold challenge: debating whether arming citizens could help effectively curb crime in T&T.
After three intense preliminary rounds of the Inter-Cohort Debate Tournament, Teams Alpha and Bravo advanced to the finals, debating whether legislation allowing citizens over 18 to legally carry a weapon would effectively curb crime in T&T.
Alpha Team’s opening debater, Cadet Michael Joseph, argued in favour, highlighting the benefits of responsible citizens having the legal right to defend themselves.
“When you grandmother can’t even walk to the parlour for a sweet drink because of fear of a robbery. When children in school uniforms are gunned down in broad daylight. When Trinidad and Tobago records 623 murders in 2024 alone. But imagine a different scenario: the vendor at the corner, legally trained, legally armed. The maxi driver: licensed and protected. The homeowner: no longer at the mercy of a break-in.”
Cadet Joseph’s teammate, Cadet Michael Alleyne, also helped strengthen their position by explaining that people need to become qualified and vetted before being granted access to a legal weapon.
“‘Eighteen is too young,’ the opposition cites, but we need to understand the law does not mean automatic access. It means eligibility with conditions. Requirements include psychological evaluation, background checks, and mandatory firearm safety training.”
Team Bravo’s final debater, Cadet Dehjon Duntin, argued that while self-defence is important, arming every citizen is not necessary. He proposed the improvement of community policing and citizens being given access to non-lethal weapons such as pepper spray and tasers.
“Arming every citizen is not protection, it is provocation. It is not empowerment, it is abdication. We do not solve guns by adding more guns. We solve it by removing the guns from the wrong hands.”
In the end, Team Alpha claimed victory, but only after a fierce contest that ended in a tie.
Chief Judge, attorney-at-law Lyn Lopez, was called upon to break the deadlock. Other judges included TTT’s Head of News, Dike Rostant, and teacher Melina Burnett.