Enterprise gangs: We have info to bring down TTPS

Yesterday, Abdul “Krysis” Wakeel claimed to have enough information to bring down the police service and revolutionise the way policing is done in Trinidad and Tobago.

Yesterday, Imam Umar Abdullah, the head of the Waajihatul Islaamiyya (The Islamic Front) facilitated a press conference in the Southern Hall of Centre Point Mall in Chaguanas to update the nation on the state of Enterprise and announce a way forward to peace. Abdullah was flanked by Wakeel, Nation of Islam Leader David Muhammad, and Citizens Security Programme representative Mtima Solwazi.

“Let me state very clearly here today that the conversations we have had thus far is more than enough to not just bring down the police but to advise on a total overhaul of how we do policing in this countr,” said Abdullah in response to media questions about the nature of the information Wakeel claimed to have.

“That is how serious it is. There are police officers who are moonlighting as poster boys for the police service who claim to have done a tremendous amount of work and solved numerous amount of crimes et cetera, but when the truth is told, the nation is going to be the judge.” Chiming in to the conversation, Muhammad said anyone who questions the degree of corruption in the police service is “na?ve.” He listed several newspaper articles published over the last two years which spoke of police officers being arrested and charged for misconducts ranging from police brutality to armed robbery. “That information is already out there, but yet still there seems to be a position that there still has to be some proof.” “I have decided to start a research paper on police who have openly confessed about their bosses running drug blocks and they not being able to do anything about it.

We have gotten verbatim reports from police officers who have been transferred from one station to very far away from their home for trying to interfere with police criminal conduct.” Muhammad said the country has a “legacy” of corrupt police which calls for a “more relentless aggressive pursuit of this kind of information when it comes to police misconduct.” Newsday asked Abdullah how confident he was in their ability to give information to the police on police corruption given the level of police corruption he described. He said, “We believe that the powers that be is going to find a way to receive that information in the manner in which we want to give it. There are police officers in this country who do a tremendous amount of good work and there are police officers in high ranks in this country who wants to see justice and fairness prevail in the land.” Abdullah said, “Unruly ISIS”, now to be known as “Masjidus Salaam” (Masjid of Peace), and the Rasta City were willing to provide information to the police in this regard.

However, absent for the press conference was Kerron Alexis, son of deceased Selwyn “Robocop” Alexis. Abdullah said Alexis’ absence was due to him being fearful of being misunderstood by the media, but he assured that he too was willing to cooperate.

Today, the Roots Foundation, also led by Solwazi, will facilitate a “focus group discussion” in the Trinidad Muslim League Auditorium in St Joseph.

Members of the community are expected to gather to discuss the causes of violence in the community and develop ways to reduce it.

On April 22, Roots will host a “Violence Prevention Seminar” which will explore the “upturn in violence involving Muslims, masculine identities, sexual gender-based violence and men’s violence.