Editorial: Was the Alleyne "pappyshow" really necessary?

The "pappyshow" outside the studios of TV6 in Port of Spain did not have to happen.

It was triggered by an announcement by Attorney Om Lalla that his client, Crime Watch host Ian Alleyne, was to be arrested. That prompted a mob to descend on the TV6 compound to hurl insults at the police and try to prevent the arrest.

In the process, Alleyne's arrest became a "martydom".

Was this necessary?

Alleyne had been under investigation since last year and he and his lawyer expected charges to be laid. He was neither considered dangerous nor a flight risk so there was no urgency for police to engage in a public display in order to arrest the man.

This could have been handled in a much more quiet, civilised and dignified manner. Police could have made the arrest at Alleyne's home, at his lawyer's office or any other place without advertising their intentions.

And Lalla and Alleyne, having learned about the police intentions, could have acted more responsibly by not broadcasting the plan for Alleyne's arrest, thereby inviting the mob.

This kind of mob behaviour is getting too common in Trinidad & Tobago. While people have a right to demonstrate and protest for a cause in which they believe, the police also have a duty and obligation to conduct their affairs without intimidation and harrassment.

If in the opinion of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) and the police a citizen has committed an offence then the police have an obligation to arrest that person. No citizen has the right to obstruct the police in such an exercise unless there is a clear case of victimisation, discrimination of unjust treatment.

This certainly does not appear to be the case in the Alleyne matter. Police had conducted an investigation and from all the media reports it seems that police advised the relevant parties of their intentions and the parties agreed to cooperate.

Where it went off the rails was when Alleyne and his lawyer made a private affair public and indirectly invited people to protest. That kind of incitement is irresponsible.

We cannot expect police to deal with crime if we continue to stand in their way every time they touch someone we perceive to be untouchable or a national icon. Nobody is above the law. If Alleyne committed a crime, then he must be guaranteed due process and answer to the authorities.

The public must understand, as well, that bullying is not going to solve Trinidad & Tobago's problems.