Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says the Government will decide its next move on the State of Emergency following Thursday’s meeting of the National Security Council.
Speaking with reporters on Wednesday after the opening of the new Law Term, Persad-Bissessar declined to say whether the Government intends to seek an extension of the SOE, which is expected to expire on September 17.
She said the matter will first be considered by the National Security Council before the Government announces its position.
Asked whether she believed the SOE had been successful, Persad-Bissessar said: “I think it has been very successful.”
While acknowledging that a State of Emergency may not be the ideal long-term approach, the Prime Minister defended the measure by pointing to reductions in reported crime.
“Numbers don’t lie,” she said, arguing that crime figures have fallen across the country’s police divisions.
Persad-Bissessar did not speculate on what legal or parliamentary steps could follow if the Government decides to continue the emergency measures, maintaining that the National Security Council must first deliberate on the issue.
The Government is expected to provide further information on the future of the SOE following Thursday’s meeting, with September 17 approaching as the current expiry date.
