Army recruits to join police in fight against crime

After 15 weeks of training some 186 new recruits to the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment will now join the frontline war against crime, announced Commanding Officer, Colonel Peter Joseph, as he addressed their Passing-out Parade on Thursday at Teteron Barracks. He said the recruits had answered the call of duty to their country now when there was a need for rededication to the cause of keeping the country safe. Joseph disclosed: “Initially all of you will be posted to the 1st Battalion to contribute to our support of the Police in their war against crime.” Noting the recruits had undergone very rigorous training, he praised them for now possessing the qualities of loyalty, courage, single-mindedness, camaraderie, and duty to country. But he added that the Regiment was now undergoing vital changes to ensure it could quickly and effectively respond to changing scenarios, and that each soldier also had to keep up with change.

The Regiment, he said, had to be able to function in an increasingly technical world and sustain itself at the cutting edge of military excellence. He said: “You have joined our organisation at a time when the method for advancement is being shifted away from an exclusively seniority-based system to one that includes seniority but also adds merit and in which high performance is rewarded. “Today’s soldier cannot be regarded as someone merely marking time, waiting to defend the country in case of an internal attack or external aggression. Today’s soldier must operate in an international context. He/she is expected to operate in a global environment of internet and satellite technology.” Each recruit, he said, was expected to be disciplined, goal-oriented and flexible, and to show initiative and intelligence.

Joseph then warned the recruits on their conduct towards civilians enrolled in the army’s youth programmes like the Civilian Conservation Corps which enrols both males and females. Noting they had a role to defend all our peoples and to work with young adults, he admonished: “Although there will not be a significant difference in ages we expect you to live up to the responsibility placed on your shoulders. Stay focussed and be part of the solution, not part of the problem.” Joseph concluded by quoting United States Army General Douglas McArthur: “In no other profession are the penalties for employing untraineed personnel so appalling or so irrevocable as the military.”