Gift: Manning to deal with kidnapping talk

FOREIGN AFFAIRS Minister Knowlson Gift yesterday said Prime Minister Patrick Manning will clear the air about reports which alleged that he described kidnappings in Trinidad and Tobago as “bogus.” The Prime Minister reportedly made the statement while addressing TT nationals at Howard University this week, and Gift was present when he did so.

Asked during a news conference at Knowlsey Building to clarify what was Manning’s exact statement regarding kidnappings in TT, Gift said: “As you know, the PM is still on travel status and when he returns to TT, he will deal with those issues extensively and comprehensively. I will not want to preempt the Prime Minister.” Manning returned home last night. Addressing Thursday’s post-Cabinet meeting at Whitehall, acting PM Joan Yuille-Williams said she was unaware of the context in which the reported statement was made and as such, could not comment on the matter.

Yuille-Williams noted that on Wednesday, Acting Police Commis-sioner Everald Snaggs said of the 43 kidnappings in TT to date, ten were false. Manning’s reported comments were criticised by the Opposition UNC and the San Juan Business Association. While various overseas security advisories have noted kidnapping as a problem in TT, the latest overseas security report for TT states “the overall level of kidnappings in TT is nowhere that of other countries in the region and this country does not have a kidnapping crisis on its hands. Both the American State Department and the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs currently describe TT as “a safe global destination,” despite the current levels of crime in the country.