By Sue-Ann Wayow
INFORMATION from international partners would have aided in the decision to disband the Special Operations Response Team (SORT) and form the National Operation Task Force (NOFT).
This is according to Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds who said the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) learnt a lot from international policing organisations.
Responding to questions asked in the Senate on Tuesday by Opposition Senator Wade Mark, Hinds said the decision would have been made in the best interest of country.
The national security minister said, “The police commissioner in his wisdom acting on information made available to him, information from at home and from our international partners from around the globe took one of his many decisions and on this occasion. It was to disband the Special Operations Response Team or SORT and to replace that with the National Operations Task Force which was not altogether new but activated on this occasion.”
NOFT is expected to be a purely operational unit consisting of specialised trained officers of the TTPS and the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF), Hinds said.
Hinds said, “This new entity will now have a proper administrative structure taking into consideration the chain of command, the unity of command and a span of control which will engender a high level of accountability.
“The unit will fall under the office of an Assistant Commissioner of Police, tactical support and be supervised by a senior superintendent who will have the responsibility of the NOTF and Inter-Agency Task Force and the operation will be headed by a superintendent.”
Mark had asked, “Having replaced the SORT with the NOFT, can the Minister indicate the expected impact this will have on crime and security in the country?”
He further asked, “Would you be able to share with this honourable House, what information and from whom did this information come from internationally that informed the commissioner to take the steps that he has taken?”
Hinds responded, “The police service of Trinidad and Tobago is engaged in the observation and the practice of what is known as best practices.
“The TTPS learns a lot from international police organisations. That is to be expected in this modern world, quite mundane, quite ordinary.
“I am to suggest to the honourable Senator that this is no different, the commissioner exercising his authority under law and under the Constitution makes these kinds of administrative changes as he sees fit on the basis of information coming to him, records that will be available to him, recent histories that will be available to him and of course influence as well by international policing organisations and elements that might provide support for the best practice in Trinidad and Tobago.”
