Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander is backing the Prime Minister’s call for greater accountability over “irresponsible behaviour” displayed on social media, while urging parents to examine their own conduct and the example they set for their children.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Alexander said people need to consider the lasting impact of their actions and online content, particularly when those actions can be seen by their children years later.
“The Prime Minister was quite right in her statement. We as parents need to start checking ourselves because we don’t even realise yet, that if we don’t check ourselves, we are really wrecking ourselves.”
The Prime Minister’s remarks on Tuesday came after videos surfaced online showing two altercations following a party in western Trinidad, while another showed a man being struck by a car in what appeared to be a deliberate act.
Minister Alexander said behaviour displayed on social media can remain online for years and could eventually affect how children view their parents.
“Remember when your behaviour is displayed on the nations streets it is kept in social media for a long time. Explain that to your son or your daughter in a couple of years from now. ‘Mammy, that was you? Is you behaving so? Mammy what you had on there?’ If you can deal with that, what can I say.”
The Homeland Security Minister said the issue is one of the reasons behind the Parent Focused Continuous Workshop, which was launched in April 2026.
He said the programme is aimed at strengthening parenting skills and helping parents better understand their responsibilities.
“It’s about improving the type of parents that we have and some persons need to start from the top because they have children but they never were given that assistance from their mother of how to be a parent, or their father. They just end up with children and was never briefed before. So that is why the programme is so important now so that people understand now that at the end of the day, the things that you do might come back to haunt you.”
Minister Alexander said the parenting programme is already proving successful in helping parents better understand their responsibilities and the impact of their behaviour.