Dillon: I’m not giving up

Speaking during the tea break of the sitting of the Lower House at Tower D, Wrightson Road, Port-of-Spain, Dillon said he feels personally pained whenever he hears of another murder. Dillon confirmed his working day starts at 6 am when he gets a brief on any crime - including murders - to have taken place overnight.

“Whenever someone is murdered, there is always pain as that person would have been someone’s son, daughter, nephew, niece, sister, brother, sister, husband, wife and what have you. As a person who has a family, I too feel pain and I offer my condolences to the family of Miss Joseph. I’m deeply concerned whenever any citizen is murdered,” Dillon said.

Dillon could give no details on any suspect in this case.

Asked if Joseph’s murder could further deepen the public’s fear of crime since it means even officers of the law are not immune to being murdered, Minister Dillon said, “I don’t think we should feel a sense of hopelessness.

The police should not put their hands up in the air and give up the fight against crime and criminality.

I as Minister of National Security would not give up and neither would the Government. I don’t feel citizens would or should give up.” He said no one must give up or give in to the criminal element because criminals are in the minority, while god-fearing citizens are in the majority. “The majority will always overcome the minority, so we cannot give up. I don’t intend to give up as Minister of National Security. Definitely don’t. The majority of the Police Service don’t intend to (give up), neither do the law enforcement agencies and the Defence Force. We’ll always be there to continue the fight.” Asked about Joseph’s job-performance, Dillon replied, “From what her colleagues have said, she was a very dedicated officer. A young officer, just passed out of the parade square, now about to start her career as a police. All that hope and aspiration she had, has been killed.”