…hear no criticism

This Eyewitness thought he’d experienced some barefacedness in his time. But the response of the Commissioner of Crime (COP) to questions from this newspaper about the “spiraling crime wave” takes the cake. Let’s review what went on. During the August Budget debate in Parliament, the Minister of Finance – with no reason to bad mouth his own government, you’d hope – announced that the crime situation was “the “most pressing and most depressing problem facing our nation today.”

He was forthright in placing responsibility for the debacle: “We need a police force that is more accountable to the public and better able to deal with crime and anti-social behaviour that is anathema to the good life,” the Finance Minister insisted. The month before, the President had summoned Ramjattan and his security big wigs – including the aforementioned COP – at 4 am in the morning to discuss “the rising crime situation”.

Granger had called the meeting both because the crime situation was so dire and because Ramjattan had to ensure that his most potent innovation to fight crime up to then – a 2 am curfew on drinking – was enforced. But in the meeting Ramjattan came up with a new plan – which he passed on to the COP to “flesh out”. Once again, Ramjattan thought OUTSIDE the box. While everyone was talking about beat patrolmen and such like, the new Security Minister announced that the COP should deploy “horses and dogs” to take on the criminals.

It was said that the COP didn’t take too kindly to the suggestion since it intimated that his men weren’t as good as horses and dogs. If there’s one thing civilians shouldn’t do – no matter how highly placed – it was not to mess with the Blue Wall”. Policemen are loyal to their own. So it was against this background that your Eyewitness felt the COP was really taking on the Government when he made two assertions- first that crime wasn’t actually getting out of hand and secondly that it was the “politicians” who were pushing that line.

Now since the President, his Finance Minister, his Minister of the Presidency and his direct boss, the Minister of National Security has all asserted that crime was rising, there couldn’t be anyone else he could be “throwing talk” at, could he? Of course, there were the PPP types, including the ex-Home Affairs honcho, Rohee, who carried on about crime. But who listens to them? They’re just preaching to the congregation.

It’s the fellas in government, from the President downwards, who have no need to badmouth themselves, who’s been on the COP’s case.

And this Eyewitness doesn’t think they’ll take too kindly to the COP’s accusations!

…only politicians make them up

But the COP didn’t stop at “throwing talk” at the Government politicians, he actually accused them of maybe being involved in some of the “crimes” that inflated the “serious crimes figures”. The latter had been swelling faster than a marabunta’s bite, so the COP couldn’t very well ignore them, could he? Rapes, murders, robberies, beatings and such like we’re serious business.

Now very recently, the COP had hauled in a fella for questioning on some of the said “serious crimes”. He’d sang more than the proverbial Canary about politicians involved in all kinds of nefarious deeds – worse than the run-of-mill “serious crimes”. Some of those politicians were still around. Could it be that the COP had some hard information that some of the Bannuhs now in Government had done the dirty?

But if what the snitch had said had any truth to it, the COP better look out.

Those political Bannuhs had a lot of clout!

…do no time

But your Eyewitness thinks we’re in for some interesting times. When the top man in the war against anarchy doesn’t have confidence in his own bosses…you know things na regulah!