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THE Prime Minister said crime was not the only issue that the Government is dealing with but all issues will affect the interests of the population.
Dr Rowley gave the assurance that as Government does all in its power to fight crime, it will not allow the Opposition UNC and its friends to distract the population away from all matters which are important to them.
He made those statements during a PNM public meeting at Tropical Angel Harps Pan Yard, Enterprise, Chaguanas on Thursday night.
Rowley comments came as TT recorded its 100th murder in 2024 on Thursday morning in just 67 days this year.
The country's 100th murder victim this year was Richard "Manison" Mark who was killed on the Churchill Roosevelt Highway, hours after surviving an attempt on his life on Wednesday night in Trincity.
On Thursday night, Rowley said, "In this age where truth is dying as a national discourse, they (UNC) would have you believe, that the problem we having with crime is as a result of Rowley and his government."
He told his audience about an experience he had in 1986 when he had to defend his wife Sharon and himself from a knife-wielding bandit in an early-morning attack at his home. She was five months pregnant at the time.
"Thank God I survived that and I am here to be talking to you tonight."
He reminded PNM supporters that people were killed in the Prime Minister's Residence in St Ann's when Basdeo Panday was prime minister.
Rowley said Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar demonstrated poor judgement as prime minister in dealing with crime.
"The crime flared up to the point where she in a panic declared a state of emergency. The solution to that flare up was to lock up black people left, right and centre and say jail make to ripe fig."
Rowley said taxpayers were still paying millions of dollars as a result of that mistake by Persad-Bissessar.
Persad-Bissessar, he continued, is trying make the entire national conversation about crime.
"In other words, let the minority criminal element destroy the country by us giving them, all of our time and all of our oxygen."
Rowley said, "We have a significant outlay in resources and personnel dealing with the crime situation."
He added, "To say that the Government is not dealing with it and to say the Government is not in a position to deal with it, is a lie."
Rowley said, "There are 50 other things that we have to deal with at the same time."
The UNC, he continued, can only talk about "crime, crime,crime as if TT is only to be concerned about crime"
Rowley said, "They cannot talk about anything else."
After reiterating his condemnation of the Opposition's refusal to meet with Government to discuss a bipartisan approach to deal with crime, Rowley said the UNC was busy furthering its political agenda through its town hall meetings on crime.
He reiterated that former St Lucia prime minister Allan Chastanet was in no position to advise TT on crime when St Lucia had to seek outside help to deal with criminal gangs there.
Rowley said TT was not in that position.
Rowley dismissed statements by Prof Selwyn Cudjoe at one of those meetings that crime in TT was based on the wealth he accumulated as prime minister
"My health is my wealth!"
Rowley had some advice for Cudjoe.
"You just haul..."
He said the Strategic Services Agency (SSA) was another matter which the UNC was trying to score political points on.
A statement on Sunday from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) said, "The National Security Council (NSC) had recommended to the Cabinet that the head of the SSA be replaced immediately and that new leadership and management be installed with despatch."
Dr Rowley is the chairman of the NSC and head of the Cabinet.
The OPM added, "This recommendation has been effected and as of Saturday March 2 the head of the SSA (Maj Roger Best) has been sent on administrative leave.
"Trinidad and Tobago's Ambassador to Washington, DC, Brig-Gen Anthony Phillips-Spencer, was recalled on March 2 and appointed acting SSA director by President Christine Kangaloo."
On Thursday, Rowley slammed Persad-Bissessar for attempting to fool the population into believing that Government was using the Strategic Services Agency (SSA) to spy on them.
In a statement on Wednesday, Persad-Bissessar advised citizens to be cautious of what they wrote in their e-mails, text and WhatsApp messages because they might be under surveillance by the SSA.
Rowley said he had no relationship with Phillips-Spencer that would make him unable to "say no" to the acting head of the SSA. He said he was glad someone of Phillips-Spencer's calibre was able to step into the situation at short notice.
He hinted the same could not be same could not be said for Persad-Bissessar with respect to technician Reshmi Ramnarine who was hired as head of the SSA's predecessor agency, the Security Intelligence Agency, under the former UNC-led People's Partnership coalition government.
Rowley told Persad-Bissessar, "You couldn't tell Reshmi no."
Public outrage over her appointment in 2011 led Ramnarine to resign shortly afterwards.
Rowley, who was opposition leader then, claimed that Persad-Bissessar's government as spying on people it considered its enemies.
Persad-Bissessar has admitted Ramnarine's appointment was one of her biggest mistakes as prime minister.
On Thursday, Rowley said the reasons for the action that Government took with respect to the SSA would be known in due course.
He reminded PNM supporters that on Wednesday in the House of Representatives, the UNC attempted to get him to speak prematurely and make comments based on hearsay on what was happening at the SSA.
Rowley recalled that Persad-Bissessar had accused former prime minister Patrick Manning of "tipping off" former Urban Development Corporation of TT (Udecott) chairman Calder Hart to corruption charges against him and Hart fled TT.
He said that was what the UNC was trying to get him to do on Wednesday but failed.
After telling PNM supporters that next year's general election would be the most important one that TT would face in its history, Rowley said citizens must elect a government that will protect their best interests and not fool them with lies.
"As fast as they (UNC) tell them (population) lies, the PNM will be there to tell them the truth!"
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