Crime, Crime, Crime!
The Government has lost its grip on the reins of governance. No one is listening to ministers, except themselves and the audience in front of them that must.
The ground beneath the upper and middle class is moving, as the earthquake of uncontrollable crime creeps and cuts across barbed wire fences, remote-controlled gates, security alarms, gated communities and security guards, deep into the belly of families. People are packing up and leaving, forced out of their homes by savage crime. Every family with young children wants to have a foreign passport, as the option of leaving is now becoming a serious imperative.
Fourteen-year-old Amrika Ramdial was kidnapped by four men in a grey Honda Civic outside her home in Gaston Street, Chaguanas, last Friday. People who witnessed the abduction recorded the number plate of the getaway car, but the plates were traced back to a trailer truck.
Amrika was abducted in daylight at around 3.45 pm. A car pulled alongside her, and two men came out with guns and snatched her as she walked towards her home in Orchard Gardens. She left behind one side of her shoes and book-bag. Police roadblocks failed to stop the getaway. What if Amrika was your child?
The day before, Ryan Naipaul, the brother of businesswoman Vindra Naipaul Coolman, who was kidnapped in December 2006, and killed, was robbed. Naipaul-Coolman was kidnapped from Lange Park in Chaguanas. Her brother, also from Lange Park, reported to police that at around 9 am on Wednesday he was in his front yard when two men with guns ran in and grabbed him. Money and jewelry were taken, but—perhaps more importantly—the thieves made off with his two licensed firearms: a pistol and a shotgun.
A few days before, Philippa Talma, daughter of former Independent Senator Prof Julian Kenny, was kidnapped and held captive for nine days.
There could hardly be a better definition of a model citizen than Julian Kenny. He has served this country with loyalty and distinction, and has quite a sense of humility and dignity. His contributions as an independent senator, academic and environmentalist are invaluable. The destabilising torture is seen in his description of the events:
“A normal humdrum routine before the evening ritual of the news; a brief phone call; puzzlement, a brief drive to Philippa’s boutique; her empty car; security arriving; police arriving; Dan arriving; Jean arriving; a neighbour describing to the police the event; the car number; internal confusion; a desperate call to Martin, his visit; his cellphone calls as he paced about the lawn; a wretched sleepless night and endless waiting; two chilling telephone calls; absolute panic, blood pressure 190/120, our family doctor’s visit and a drug-induced sleep—and the machinery moves into full gear.
The ups and downs of blurred time for all of us in the next few days; the calls from many; visits, some simply taking over the routine tasks; the e-mail, really frightful thoughts; mostly deepest despair mixed with hope, and eventually, the one call from Peter on that Sunday morning, nine days later, Mother’s Day—we’ve got her.
Then release.”
The incompetence of a minority PNM government allowed a handful of criminals to blossom and grow from strength to strength. The PNM nurtured these infant gangs with lucrative URP and Cepep contracts. It exploited their vulnerable dependency syndrome, because it wanted to ride the back of the black tiger into political office. Now, it cannot dismount or wound it, for fear that this powerful tiger will indiscriminately devour even the hands of those that once fed it.
Martin Joseph remains firm, despite the proliferation of gangs under his watch. He has probably lost count and can’t be bothered any more. He has armed security.
Blood and tears are flowing like water, and the soul of our nation has been ruptured. The haemorrhaging continues unabated and the situation is desperate and critical. When would Mr Manning realise his government needs to reorganise its priorities to focus on the things that are literally killing us?
Is it too much to ask of our PM that he should stop looking up into the sky at his beloved skyscrapers, so he could see the bloodshed and anguish of those with who live and walk on the ground?
By Anand Ramlogan 2008-05-25
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When people deal with incurable disease such as cancer, they make adequate preparations or they decide where to go and what to do next. Some cancers move slowly and some cause rapid death.
The reality is that T&T has been suffering with a serious social cancer which began around 1990. The evidence was previously posted by Site Admin. See graph the below.
Well I will not be debating whether the graph represents 'disease' - I simply accept that it does. Sometimes we tend to over-analyse the blindingly obvious. I will therefore stand up anywhere in the world and assert that the statistics above - along with rocketing crime rates in T&T represent a 'social cancer'.
Amazingly prior to election PNM hot shots were boasting a reduction in serious crime and murder. Post election there is a remarkable silence on the fact that there is a 70% increase in the homicide rate. We need to remember that Patrick Manning was reported to have said in his Howard University speech that there was not crime problem in Trinidad. That was around 2004-2005. The statistics available to the Manning government would have informed them differently - as they would any average man in the street.
What's happend to all the prayers that have been sung to save the nation and to guide politicians. Now I'm hearing that if it wasn't for all that prayers things would have been far worse. I don't believe it though. I don't believe that god comes out of his heaven to stop tsunamis, earthquakes and psychotic dictators - and I have a lot of evidence to support my view.
If prayer would cure cancers then there would be no need for the field of 'palliative medicine'. If prayer could have cure the cancer of crime in T&T it would have a long time ago.
My message - ad nauseum - stop praying and start moving. Whey? Moving out of T&T. How? Well eef was me, I was building a raft eef I had to. But for those with any degree of intelligence, you are dealing with a crime tsunami. Desperate measures are required. Stop hoping, praying and start moving.
Get out now! Escape is a good survival strategy.
A cancer -called crime - is surely eating away at our T&T society daily, and its being perpetuated by the inept Manning administration, simply because they created and nurtured it - a "monster" for their own survival and well being, and now they are too paralyzed and dumbfounded as to what to do - let alone having a solution to remedy the growing tragedy they have saddled the people of our lovely country with...!
Of course, Manning has his 75 or so personal body guards to protect himself and his family, so it does not matter to him...he is not affected by any of it...he even claims to know most of the Mr. Bigs...! so no big deal for him...crime does not exist for him...!
...His eyes are only set on the skyline and tall buildings and towers, even if the people are being killed and robbed and raped and kidnapped on a daily basis, and now can't even leave their homes for fear of becoming victims to the brazen criminals...!
...Manning need to be reminded that Tall buildings and skyscrapers does not make a society, he just need to take a close look at some places like in Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, The Bronx in New York, Regent Park and Jane & Finch in Toronto, Miami, just to name a few, and he would soon come to realize that they all have tall buildings...but they also have "the highest crime rates and killings in those neighbourhoods in those respective cities"...and they also have the highest "black population" along with the greatest incidence of "blacks killing blacks", and it does not matter how much money Government throws at them now, it will not solve the problems...!
...in fact, most business people have abandoned their business places and buildings and flee from these neighbour-hoods for the safety of themselves and their families..."leaving the empty tall buildings behind..." for the criminals to make into their dens...just like they are now making Port of Spain into a place that people and businesses are becoming afraid to go or shop...this is the society that the Manning Administration is creating...along with the downfall of a country and people...!
...when the President of our country is now admitting that we are a failing state and a backward country...when the Prime Minister said that "we are not sophisticated enough" to debate the issues at the last election, nor mature enough to understand the elections...when he "appointed his wife as Minister of Education" and now the results of her work is being reflected in our today's young children at shool at five and eight years old getting into crimes already, we know that they have created a sick society and Manning does not care...!
...so yes, the cancer spreads across our once lovely land affecting our people in a way that is too profound and tragic for words...except, the "Megalomaniac Manning" does not have time on his agenda to hear or feel the people's cries for help, he is too absorbed in himself and lost in his own mind, wherever it may be, but not in Good Ole Trinidad & Tobago...!
....he is too far gone already, well on his way to a Dictator of his own making, in his mind and his actions...take a good close look...it is so evident...but then Trinis just love being insulted by Manning time and time again...over and over ....repeatedly.....why I don't know...!
...the PNMites keep putting him back in power even if it kills them, and he knows it all too well just maybe this time it will be different..??...he's gone too far...??? Who knows...???
...they need to fix it and soon, if its not already too late, the cancer of crime and corruption spreads and has become un-stoppable after time...but then...its fast getting there...!