How dare anyone interfere with the modern 21st policing that exists in Trinidad? Is it a fact that the present Minister of National Security intends to stop the initiative? There is very likely a lot of unease among the citizens as they contemplate the possibility of ending the 21st century policing. How can anyone contemplate changing the efficient 21st century method of checking speeding vehicles by hiding behind utility poles with a piece of PVC piping in one hand, followed by a policeman walking in front of the speeding car with raised hands, hoping the car stops before hitting the officer?

Certainly the Minister could not be thinking about replacing that method with the backward step of using electronic devices. One wonders if the Minister could be so audacious as to suggest that police revert to patrolling our streets rather than the 21st century practice of using patrol cars for running errands.

Is the Minister suggesting that police make use of electronic recording devices like cameras in hot spots to aid in crime detection? How can such a move be contemplated when there is 21st century policing?

As the nation awaits the possibility of the present Minister of National Security interfering with the 21st policing initiatives, it is possible to conjure images of changes that would send shock waves throughout the Police Service. Imagine the end of identifying criminal suspects by touching them on the shoulder and replacing that with one-way mirrors where the criminals cannot see who is identifying them. Imagine a simple ticket system where the officer simply ticks off the relevant boxes that correspond to the violation rather than writing out a page-long document that takes the best part of an hour to complete. Could the end of 21st policing mean the employment of civilians to augment the work of policemen by performing duties like taking reports, answering telephone calls and relaying information to patrol cars? What about access to criminal databases and licensing information online in patrol cars?

Would this new initiative mean police officers would now have standard arms rather than a variety of different guns? Would such an intervention allow for the Police Service to use the thousands of taser guns that are filling up the police warehouse? Would the system be changed to allow citizens to legitimately access firearms once they qualify regardless of their social status, or will the Minister continue with the 21st century policing that allows the Commissioner of Police alone to give a permit to whomever he feels?

Change the 21st policing initiative? Are we mad? This initiative allows our police officers to leave their guns in the station and walk unarmed through the den of criminals from whom they earlier protected the public. That initiative allows officers to wear long-sleeve sweaters in the hot sun with ski hats; why would anyone want to change that?

Senior police officers can use police cars to transport family members and attend functions; why change that? Police officers can drive along the highways with lights flashing while the rest of the public passes them at three times the legal speed limit; why interfere with that? There are no GPS systems or cameras in patrol cars to monitor the action of officers; why try to change that by moving away from the present system?

With over 300 murders a year, many citizens have lost faith in the Police Service; armed gangs control many construction projects and patrol their drug dens. Why in such a situation should anyone wish to interfere with the existing system of policing? Like "Sprangalang" would say, "Lef dem so."

Steve Alvarez

via e-mail