In Brief
- Message to Residents: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has urged law-abiding residents of the Maloney Gardens Housing Development to ‘stay strong,’ vowing her government will do ‘whatever it takes’ to dismantle gang operations following Tuesday’s declaration of a closed zone and a 9 pm to 5 am curfew.
- Slamming Gang ‘Cowardice’: Sharing video footage of Monday’s shooting that triggered the Special Operations lockdown, the Prime Minister called the gang members ‘cowardly bullies’ who terrorise unarmed citizens but hide when confronted by the protective services.
- Political Criticisms: Persad-Bissessar accused the opposition People’s National Movement (PNM) and the area’s sitting MP of treating residents merely as a ‘vote bank’ and failing for years to protect the community from gang violence.
By Alicia Chamely
Law-abiding citizens of Maloney deserve to live in peace, says Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
In a social media message to the residents of the Maloney Gardens Housing Development—which has been declared a “closed zone” under the Special Operations Act—Persad-Bissessar called on the community to “stay strong” as her government works to dismantle gang operations in the area.
Persad-Bissessar wrote, “I want the law-abiding citizens of Maloney to know that your Prime Minister loves you and your children very much. I consider you all my family, and your children are my children. I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe, and if that means using Special Operations to put down the gangs operating in your community, that is exactly what I will do.”
Maloney Gardens was designated a “closed zone” on Tuesday evening under the Special Operations Act, with a curfew put into effect between the hours of 9 pm and 5 am.
Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro confirmed that the enactment of the provisions of the Special Operations Act was in response to police intelligence indicating escalating gang activity and violence following a shooting on Monday.
A video of Monday’s shooting accompanied Persad-Bissessar’s post.
Commenting on the gangs in the area and their reaction to the government’s actions, the Prime Minister stated, “Today, the Maloney community saw first-hand the cowardice of the gangs operating in their community. These gangs only terrorise law-abiding citizens who don’t have the means to defend themselves.”
Stating that no gang member had the courage to take on the members of the protective services, she wrote, “Instead, they hid like the cowardly bullies they are because that is their true nature: weakness. That is what happens when a fake bad man meets [a] real bad man.”
Persad-Bissessar stated that the United National Congress (UNC) government was determined to protect all law-abiding citizens, adding, “No man, woman or child should have to flee for their lives in their own community from rampaging gangs shooting indiscriminately.”
Taking aim at the previous People’s National Movement (PNM) administration, she stated, “For years, the PNM and the sitting MP did nothing to protect the people of Maloney from being terrorised by violent gangs and criminals. The PNM never cared about their supporters, whom they view as a vote bank at election time. They are only interested in doing the bidding of the one per cent owners of the PNM.”
Stating that the residents of Maloney deserved to “live happy lives in their community, free of fear and intimidation,” she dismissed the “PNM and their supporters” who did not want the protection of the state under the Special Operations Act.
Persad-Bissessar, however, added, “But as long as there is one law-abiding citizen in any community who wants that protection, your Prime Minister and my government will move to provide it.”
She concluded her message by thanking all personnel involved in the operations, stating, “I thank all the personnel involved in these operations and pray that God blesses you all with protection, strength and patience while you do your duty to protect the law-abiding citizens of Maloney.”
