Subhas Panday: Govt, criminals in partnership

When the UNC hanged nine murderers (Dole Chadee and his accomplices) in one batch, it sent a clear message to the criminals and the entire country that Government was serious about addressing crime. But now the bandits are in the bosom of the PNM, charged Princes Town MP Subhas Panday yesterday. He said the criminals could only be so “boldface” under a PNM Government. “In a cemetery in broad daylight when  a gang member was slain, he had a 12-gun salute,” he said. “Ridiculous!” Independent UNC member Gillian Lucky chimed in, adding: “Using their (the criminals’) own guns.”

Speaking in the debate on the Summary Offences Amendment Bill and the Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill in the House of Representatives yesterday, Panday said crime would not be solved because the Government and the criminals were in partnership. “The criminals are supporters of the PNM. The bandits are their followers. And they ’fraid to touch them. They  don’t want to touch them,” he said. He said the statements of National Security Minister Martin Joseph and Attorney General John Jeremie to the Parliament on crime were pure bravado and “ole talk.”

Panday said he could not understand how 4,000 police officers with all their weapons and resources could not deal with 500 hard core criminals in 66 gangs. “(You mean) You (the police) cannot identify them (the hardcore criminals) with 4,000 police officers, and lock them up and use the law to expedite the system?” he asked. “Why can’t they (the police)  catch the kidnappers and the murderers?” But he said the police could not deal with criminals because the Prime Minister “laundered them,” elevating them to the status  of “community leaders.” “When you give them that kind of authority, they could walk with the guns in their waist through Port-of-Spain,” he said.

Panday said the police knew that these (community leaders) were “PNM honchos” and therefore they (the police) had to be careful in dealing with them. He recalled that deceased gang leader Mark Guerra was at a PNM meeting “protecting” PNM membership in Couva the day before he was killed. He said Guerra went there because of a statement made by Couva South MP Kelvin Ramnath that he could not guarantee the safety of Government members in Central Trinidad after they had decimated the sugar industry. “And instead of bringing the police, they (the PNM) brought Mark Guerra to protect them,” Panday stated.

He also recalled that former works minister, Franklin Khan, gave Abu Bakr a PBR pass while denying this privilege “to hard-working people.” He said when asked about this, Khan said Bakr was a religious leader. He added that Bakr’s group was also given a sub-contract with State-owned Petrotrin and a quarry. Panday said that in the marginal constituencies these criminal elements were financed by the PNM to inflict violence on UNC supporters. “You were  riding a tiger and you now have serious trouble jumping off,” he said. Panday said he remembered Trade Minister Ken Valley saying that “criminals were people too” and that he would usually meet with 30 to 40 of them in his constituency office. He recalled that Valley had said then that it was at your own peril that you did not meet with these people.