Thursday, October 6, 2011

Moonilal says Anti Gang Act might be amended

Government House Leader Dr Roodal Moonilal said Wednesday the Anti-Gang Act might have to be amended.

However he noted that any amendments to the legislation will have to be addressed by the Minister of National Security and the Attorney General.

Moonilal spoke with reporters at the University of The West Indies (UWI) at a ceremony to sign a letter of intention between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government to begin a phasing out hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFCs) in Trinidad and Tobago.

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley on Monday said the PNM will support Government if it brings an amendment to the Anti-Gang Act to make it mandatory that any evidence gathered against persons charged under this law be reviewed by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), before the cases reach the courts.

Rowley said this provision is not in the existing Anti- Gang Act. He added such an amendment is necessary in order to prevent persons who have been charged under the Anti-Gang law to be released because of a lack of evidence against them.

Dozens of people detained during the State of Emergency have been freed because the Director of Public Prosecution determined that the state did not have sufficient evidence to prosecute.

Rowley said that has happened because of the failure of investigators to collect evidence that could be used to prosecute.

Moonilal said, “I have read of the concerns raised by the Opposition Leader and found it really interesting since the PNM was part and parcel of drafting the bill. It appears they may have misled the Parliament with some of these amendments and we may have to go back."

He added, “The PNM contributed in a big way to the final bill. It must be noted that at Parliament, in some cases, the Government bent over backwards to accept some of their amendments."

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Jai & Sero

Jai & Sero

Our family at home in Toronto 2008

Our family at home in Toronto 2008
Amit, Heather, Fuzz, Aj, Jiv, Shiva, Rampa, Sero, Jai