According to the Opposition Party, the other big reason the electors should make a protest vote against the PUP government is their mismanagement of crime. It's well known that the UDP has made a loud and persistent call for the resignation or removal of Police Minister Kareem Musa and his CEO, Kevin Arthurs.
But today, the UDP's Shadow Minister of National Security, Michael Peyrefitte, unexpected upped the ante: he made a surprising call for Police Commissioner Chester Williams to step down.
Here's how he justified that stance against the man he once worked closely with:
Moses "Shyne" Barrow - Leader of Opposition
"There is no security in our country, and I don't blame it on the security forces. I blame it on the leadership; I blame it on the leadership in the Ministry of Police. The minister of police had all the answers when he was in opposition. Heaven forsakes, I should ever be that I would resign before I become him. I would have said, 'You know what? It's too much for me. This is overwhelming. PM, give somebody else this job. Do the right thing. You are in over your head. I support you on the legalization of marijuana, New Growth Industries. Focus on that, my brother, for the sake of citizen security."
Michael Peyrefitte - UDP Senator/Former Minister Responsible For Police
"We repeat our call for the minister of Police and his CEO to resign. I called for the resignation of the Minister and the CEO repeatedly because when it comes to the national security apparatus, he only has one responsibility, you know. That's the police, just police. Let's not forget; for example, when I was National Security Minister and Attorney General, I was AG, police, BDF, Coast Guard, prisons, all of that. I was doing by myself what four ministers
are doing now. So, each of those four ministers has no excuse. None of them have any excuse for why they shouldn't be doing an excellent job in their respective portfolios. We are looking at a situation where you have a person with one portfolio, [wh] can't perform, has not the respect of the police department, has not the respect of the citizenry, and not the respect of those people who should fear the national security apparatus. And I'll say something else; I'll add to that. And it's not an easy add for me to say. This man has come from far. He has done well for himself. He's a hard worker. He's tenacious. But people, he is not getting the job done. The Commissioner of Police also needs to consider, look within himself, and think whether or not he needs to step aside and give way to some new blood. He's not cutting it. In my view, the police department needs a new commissioner. It needs to be shaken up. He has never claimed that the job was easy. He has never claimed that it could be done in the blink of an eye. He has never claimed that. But let's be frank; It's not working."
Shortly after the UDP's extended press conference, Police Commissioner Chester Williams was quick to respond with a Facebook post.
He said, quote: "Some people stay in a corner and pray for crime to increase with the hope that they can get on board a political tide to take them where they want to be. I say the lives of our people being lost in our streets is not and should not be taken as political… We now have a younger generation with a greater propensity for violence, [which] certainly has made policing more complex; but despite this glaring fact, we have still been able to maintain our murder rate to a level below the previous years. The complexity of crime requires a multi-sectoral approach, and that is why our minister and our department have teamed up with other ministries and departments to form a multi-sectoral approach to fight crime. Yes, we cannot expect this approach to erase all the damage that was done for over a decade. It certainly will take time to become fully effective. In the meantime, we continue to do our best to investigate and suppress the problem to prevent the situation from getting out of control." End quote.
He then adds that he is happy to be working with, quote, "a minister who is committed to make a difference by working with other stakeholders to address the root causes of crime as opposed to the effect."
