As he outlined the reasons why the State of Emergency is necessary at this time, Attorney General John Jeremie shared that had it not been proclaimed, different headlines, similar to those of July 27th 1990, may have been seen today.
As the government laid a motion to extend the State of Emergency to three months in the House of Representatives in an Extraordinary Sitting on Monday, AG Jeremie said it was necessary, as the Commissioner of Police confirmed the emergence of a coordinated and highly dangerous organised criminal network operating from within the country’s prisons.
Since then, ten inmates from the Maximum Security Prison at Golden Grove were transferred to Defence Force facilities in Chaguaramas.
“Along with the many subsequent operations, which I can confirm have in fact taken place, and this is where the debate becomes something else other than the President’s statement, there have been subsequent operations by the police and armed forces, some of which have been publicised some of which have not been publicised, many of us may not have been here today.”
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar also weighed in, pointing to serious missteps in prison management under the former administration.
She said those decisions laid the groundwork for today’s threat, particularly the decision to house known gang leaders in a single unit at Building 13.
“And what the honourable AG shared with us earlier was happening is that all these kingpins coordinated, became a syndicate when you place it in that maximum security prison building. Building 13. The Member for Tunapuna will share with us what was happening in Building 13 when you thought you put all these kingpins, all these dangerous, put them to watch 65-inch TV.”
She also criticised the lack of safeguards and revealed that Building 13 was compromised.
“All the security things in Building 13, they rip out everything. The Member for Tunapuna told me that. There’s nothing, he said, there now. They ripped out, the criminals ripped out everything in Building 13, and the building was no longer Maximum Security building.”
The Prime Minister made it clear that the decision to call the State of Emergency was not taken lightly and was based on urgent intelligence from the heads of national security.
“We took the decision. It was not the Commissioner. The Commissioner advised, but I take full responsibility as the Prime Minister of this country. I advised the Attorney General. We both spoke, to do the legalese necessary and send it to Her Excellency, the President, to have the proclamation signed.”
The Prime Minister maintained that the government’s response was based on direct advice from the Commissioner of Police and the Commissioner of Prisons, and stressed that the facts, many of which remain classified, justify the action taken.