Political Leader of the National Transformation Alliance and former police commissioner Gary Griffith used his Christmas message this year to call for stronger leadership in the country. He said, “God chose wisely in who he sent to lead and save us, teaching the lesson that we also must be very selective in who we choose to serve us.”
Griffith is still vying to return as commissioner of police, although he has said that even if he is selected by the Police Service Commission, he does not expect Prime Minister Rowley to confirm his appointment in Parliament. Griffith, as the political leader of the NTA, is also vying to become Prime Minister himself.
In his Christmas message, Griffith said he was inspired by the words of Archbishop Jason Gordon. Archbishop Gordon gave the feature address on Thursday to the Trinidad and Tobago Transparency Institute at its Annual General Meeting.
“God works in mysterious ways, Griffith said. “So Archbishop Gordon’s comments, crystallised the direction of my message for this special time of the year for Catholics, the Christian Community and indeed all citizens, as it reminds us all why leadership matters, and why it is important for the right people, who embody strength and a deep desire for Justice; that word again, to be placed in positions to lead.”
Archbishop Gordon said in his feature address, “'Every good citizen wants the Commissioner of Police, the Minister of National Security and the Prime Minister to solve the murder problem. They cannot solve it until we, the citizens, are willing to recognise that the murder problem has its roots in a more fundamental challenge, an injustice that pervades the whole nation. This is a we problem and only we, the citizens can solve it.'”
But Griffith said he disagreed slightly with this assessment.
“While Keith Rowley, Fitzgerald Hinds and McDonald Jacob can’t be blamed for crime, no single person or office holder should, it is much more their responsibility to address the crime situation than any of the other citizens in our country. Logically speaking, they have billions of dollars in resources at their disposal, and have powers bestowed on to them that the average citizen does not have,” Griffith said.
He also said passing important laws which can help in the fight against crime falls to the Government and other representative officials, and not the average citizen. He gave examples like Whistleblower Legislation and Procurement Legislation. Griffith said it was a pattern of behaviour that does not seek the interest of the common man. Another poor choice he said was “getting rid of the team that brought the country record reductions in crime” (referring to his dismissal as commissioner).
He called on the population to pray, and join that prayer with good and righteous actions. He said, “Even as we face what appears to be our darkest hour, God always has a plan, and Good will always overcome evil.”