Rowley wants to meet with government to discuss crime

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley wants the Government and Opposition to hold joint talks to deal with the problem of gun violence.

Rowley said Saturday the apparent random shooting and mass killing of innocent bystanders in a public place on Thursday pointed to "an alarming and terrifying" escalation in the local violent crime situation.

"We have reached a point of desperation in this country where innocent people standing in a public place can be gunned down by gun-toting unknowns," he said. He added that it must no longer be seen as "this gang against that gang".

The opposition leader said he is willing to discuss with the government how he could cooperate to make any legislative changes to facilitate more effective policing and swift justice. "Fighting crime is not a political issue. It is a survival issue," he said.

"The time has come for harsh penalties to be meted out to those who choose to obtain and use firearms against the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.


"The location and removal of illegal firearms and their users should be the number one priority of the security services and the laws need to be reviewed to make violent crime involving the use of firearms an offence which should see the perpetrators put away for a long, long time on a mandatory basis," Rowley said.

He added: "The Opposition is also demanding a greater effort and allocation of resources directed towards the root causes of our crime situation as far as they are located in juvenile delinquency, poor parenting and other similar social challenges."

Rowley said the country is under siege and the current crime-fighting methods are not working.

He said there it is necessary to stop the flow of guns into the country, take guns out of the hands of criminals and to keep criminals off the streets and out of neighbourhoods.