Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar on Monday made an impassioned case in Parliament for extending Trinidad and Tobago’s current State of Emergency (SoE) by three months, insisting the move was necessary to thwart a credible and coordinated threat against national security.
Speaking in the House of Representatives, the Prime Minister said the SoE—first declared on July 17—was triggered by an intelligence dossier from the Commissioner of Police that outlined an imminent plot involving organized criminal networks, assassination targets, and simultaneous attacks on key state institutions. The document, she said, named conspirators, detailed the weapons involved, and included a list of public buildings and officials to be targeted.
“We chose prevention. That is responsibility. That is leadership,” Persad-Bissessar said, defending the decision to act swiftly. “This is not bluster, nor is it theatre. It is the fulfilment of the solemn promise we made… to make this nation safer by action, not empty noise.”
The extended SoE will remain narrow and targeted, the Prime Minister added, stressing that it does not include a curfew and will not disrupt the lives of law-abiding citizens. Its focus, she said, is on dismantling prison-to-street command chains, disrupting gang financing, and regaining control over vulnerable state-run programs long plagued by corruption.
Exposing state-linked criminal financing
The Prime Minister also used the opportunity to launch a scathing attack on the opposition People’s National Movement (PNM), accusing the former administration of enabling criminal networks through mismanagement of state programs like CEPEP and URP.
“CEPEP has become a runaway horse, funding criminal activity,” she said, citing ghost employees, political interference, and contractors linked to organized crime. She referenced sworn claims by CEPEP’s CEO alleging that PNM-linked politicians pressured the program to sign off on $1.4 billion in questionable expenditures.
She further accused the PNM of institutionalizing gang influence during periods of economic prosperity, not poverty, noting that infamous gang leaders were once given official roles, including one who served as a national advisor to the URP in the early 2000s.
Addressing critics
Anticipating criticism, Persad-Bissessar countered claims that the SoE reflects failure or overreach. “Prevention is success, not failure,” she said, responding to those who questioned the necessity of extraordinary powers. She maintained that conventional policing would not have sufficed given the scale and coordination of the threat.
To reassure the public, she emphasized that courts remain open, legal protections are intact, and all actions under the SoE are documented and subject to oversight. “Your rights stand; the criminals fall,” she said.
Citizens urged to take part
The Prime Minister ended her remarks by calling on citizens to remain calm, report suspicious activity, and engage in upcoming public consultations on crime law reform. She also appealed for community support in mentoring youth and preventing gang recruitment at the grassroots level.
“Freedom and fear are at war,” she said. “Freedom will prevail if we stand together.”
The government has committed to ending the SoE as soon as key security benchmarks are met, including breaking communication lines between prisons and gangs, reducing kidnapping threats, and seizing illegal weapons and dirty money. If those targets are not achieved within the three-month extension, Parliament will revisit the matter, Persad-Bissessar assured.
