CoP Paul failed Adam Smith Square

THE EDITOR: Did Police Commissioner Trevor Paul visit the Adam Smith Square competition venue on Carnival Tuesday? If he did, could he say honestly that he was happy with what he saw there relating to crowd control. I have listened to the Commissioner tell of what a great job the police did over the Carnival. I feel sure he is not including in that self-praise the lousy job of crowd control done by his forces at Adam Smith Square on Carnival Tuesday when no crowd control measures were in place and no mounted policemen were stationed at so important a venue. For years I have spent my mornings on Carnival Tuesday at Adam Smith Square and afternoons at Victoria Square and this Carnival Tuesday was the worst at Adam Smith.

The crowds were so packed that the mas bands were forced to use less than half of that wide roadway as masqueraders squeezed themselves between the spectators who took up more of the roadway than they should have. The only police to be seen there were the female khaki officer and her small detail who kept in front of the stand clear. Not a policeman was to be seen otherwise; nor were there any horses which are so vital to crowd control. I understand that graphic pictures were shown on television of that chaotic situation. I do not need to tell the commissioner what that situation meant. Across at Victoria Square, is it usual for the mounted policemen stationed there to do nothing for hours, only to get into action when the commissioner passes by. That’s when they try to trample everyone with their horses.

I have seen it year in and year out. Two years ago on Carnival Tuesday afternoon, a mounted policeman got into action as soon as he saw Commissioner Hilton Guy approach that point. He literally forced his horse onto persons who had nowhere to go, so much so that the horse backed into a drain and splashed dirty water several feel into the air and onto onlookers. More than that, the horse’s hind legs backed against the kerb and it lost its footing causing it to start going down, almost falling onto several onlookers who were packed tightly at the western end of the Victoria Square stage. These were persons who had nowhere else to go, yet hundreds of pounds of horse flesh were being pushed into them. If that horse had been injured, as could have been the case the offending policeman would have given some ‘cock and bull’ story even though scores of persons would have seen otherwise.

I saw almost the same situation last year when the mounted men at the western end saw Commissioner Everald Snaggs approach on horseback from the eastern end. They had not done a thing with crowd control for quite sometime before, but found it necessary to do so once Snaggs was in sight. Mr Commissioner: The crowds at the two competition points along Ariapita Avenue have grown tremendously over the years and you must keep in step with this growth by effecting measures for adequate crowd control. The Mounted Branch must be a part of this effort and the riders must ensure that, not only is the roadway in front of the judges clear, but that the path leading to and from that area should remain free for the masqueraders.

By the way, Sir whatever happened to the policy of many decades ago whereby whenever policemen were promoted to the senior ranks they must learn to ride horses? Too many police commissioners and their deputies and assistants do not ride and that is not good. Just think of the wider areas you would have covered if, instead of walking, you were on horseback as Commissioner Snaggs was last year. There was a time when the entire executive in the Police Service rode horses. Let’s begin with you and ensure that this is the rule again, rather than the exception, so that by next Carnival you would all be proficient horsemen. One last thing: Discipline in the Police Service seems to have gone through the window. I watched last year as a policeman was leaning against a post with one hand holding it as the commissioner rode up at Victoria Square.

The commissioner rode past and the constable never moved from that position. In fact, many policemen treated his riding along rather nonchalantly. As you approached a sergeant at the same venue on Carnival Tuesday this year, he never snapped to attention, nor saluted you. It was as if you were ‘one of the boys.’ The Chief of Defence Staff who accompanied you on both days must have been amazed at the behaviour of your men as he knows very well that in the army and coast guard the men and women snap to attention when the commander approaches and salute before speaking to him, standing at attention during the conversation. You must be familiar with the name Eustace Bernard, the last real police commissioner in this country. I would suggest you read his book Against The Odds. You would get a lot of valuable tips from it to help you understand how a police force should be run. Those who know say we have never had a commissioner like Eustace Bernard since he demitted office 30 years ago.

CARL PIERRE
Port-of-Spain