THERE WERE MASSIVE traffic jams and many angry people across Trinidad and Tobago yesterday.
It was all because the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service had set up roadblocks along the highways and major roads from early morning.
Motorists reported being trapped in kilometres of traffic, with a five-minute commute taking as long as two hours. They took to social media to vent their frustration. Some said they turned around and returned home, students missed end-of-term examinations and some international flights were affected.
There were suggestions that the way the police went about the exercise indicated a form of protest action. But the police said that the exercises were planned, and vice-president of the Police Service Social and Welfare Association, Inspector Roger Alexander, denied the police exercises were linked to the ongoing wage negotiations.
The police called it a day of total policing. Alexander, however, said it was not right that a police constable was working “day, lunchtime and night” for the same salary as that of a ministry clerk.
“That is amazing, eh?” he said.
Minister of National Security Senator Brigadier Carl Alfonso held an emergency meeting with the executive of the Police Service to ensure that the traffic situation is not repeated. (ES)