Chopper trouble grounds Minister

The first tour of newly appointed Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security and Housing, Anthony Roberts, had to be cut short yesterday as he was grounded by helicopter troubles.

Almost an hour before Roberts, acting Commissioner of Police Everald Snaggs, and other police officials were due to tour the Maracas Bay, Santa Cruz and St Joseph police stations, the tour had to be called off.  It is to be re-scheduled on a new date. Roberts, a former parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of National Security was sworn in at 10.00 am yesterday. This proposed tour resulted from calls by the Police Social and Welfare Association and officers of the Western division for the minister and the commissioner to tour certain stations and look at the conditions under which the officers are forced to work. This tour followed the recent closure of the Oropuche and Carenage police stations because of dilapidated conditions and  plans for the closure of the Toco, La Brea, Roxborough and St James Barracks.

While neither the minister or the commissioner was there, Newsday was presented with the lithany of woes and problems. Adding to the problems of a leaking roof, rotting floor boards, owl faeces falling into cooking food utensils, snakes  found in the sargeants’ quarters, and the building falling apart, Newsday was also informed about the lack of mobility and manpower which seriously affected the station’s ability to solve crime. One concerned officer in Maracas, said “drugs is a major crime in this area, yet we have no vehicles. “Quite recently one of our informants informed us of a drug transaction taking place on the beach and the fact that the people involved were leaving, we could not move. “We are literally stumped, so it is no surprise drug dealers do what they want in the many coves and bays along the beachfront because they know we  have no mobility.”

President of the Social and Welfare association Christopher Holder who was also present told Newsday  Maracas is the most dilapidated station out of the 84 in the country and there were plans to close it down. He, however, indicated that with the planned relocation of the officers to another site in the village, he is expecting the present site to be demolished and a new one built. Holder cautiously stayed clear of discussing the mobility and manpower situation. Let us first see about relocation and safety and then we will look at manpower and mobility. A second tour has been recarded tentatively for Wednesday. Maracas Bay police station is a 150- year-old former farmhouse.