Dear Mr Philbert

If acting Police Commissioner Philbert is as serious about solving crime as I think he is, he must deal with the simple problems that can be solved without foreign consultants. People lose confidence in the Police Service when things that make no sense continue unabated without any credible explanation. A few common-sense solutions to a few common problems must be considered. Philbert must respond to the frustration we experience when simple, unbelievable stories reinforce the image of police incompetence on a daily basis. Enough has been written about the larger problem of crime prevention, detection and investigation. I want to focus on the lackadaisical attitude and the strange policies of the Police Service.

Not our district
Last week, an old woman who was robbed visited to relate her story. Barely literate, scared and traumatised, she was sent to three different police stations, because the crime did not occur in their district. Like so many other victims, she eventually gave up and didn’t bother to report the crime. “Is nuh like they goh hold anybody,” she sighed. Is it really necessary for police officers to turn people away because the crime did not occur in their district? Can’t the report be taken and forwarded (via e-mail or fax) to the relevant station for investigation? Do trained police officers really need to handle such matters? Can’t A-Level graduates with para-legal training be hired as “customer service representatives” to deal with administration to allow trained officers to tackle crime?

Casual attitude
Reports to the local police precede domestic violence and village squabbles that turn deadly. If the police take such reports seriously, and act on them in the early stages, a lot of unnecessary suffering would be avoided. For example, it was reported that Arnold Partapsingh, 43, and his son Joshua, 22, from Aassarath Road, Cunupia, were brutally chopped by another father and son at home. Young Joshua had to undergo emergency reconstructive surgery on his mutilated left hand. Prior to this attack, Partapsingh had made several reports to Cunupia Police Station, because his car was burnt and he was being constantly bullied, threatened and harassed by his assailants.

The casual attitude and indifference of the police almost cost him his life. Had Cunupia police acted on the previous reports and stopped this bully, law and order could have prevailed. A young man’s hands might have been saved, and a violent father might not have been able to influence his son to attack defenceless people. Mr Philbert, what are you going to do about this informal policy of not acting until blood is shed or it’s too late? Community and domestic crimes like these can be prevented, so please, act now.

Drunk driving
The police routinely reprimand people for saying the driver of vehicle that hit them was drunk or intoxicated. Some clients have indicated that the officers recording their statements bluntly refused to write this. Recently, for example, in the Mosquito Creek tragedy, the police laid several charges for reckless and dangerous driving, but none for driving under the influence of alcohol, or while intoxicated. This kind of illogic is responsible for the loss of confidence in the criminal justice system, and belief by many that our law is, indeed, an a--.

When was the last time you saw someone being charged with drunk driving in Trinidad and Tobago? God alone knows we drink and drive more than average. The belated introduction of the breathalyser might make a difference, but how many more must die before the government implements this life-saving law is Philbert’s and Imbert’s guess. I trust that these issues can be addressed as a matter of urgency. They are “low-hanging fruits” on the tree of change planted by Philbert and Mastrofski that can be easily reached with minimum effort.