Director of the National Operations Centre (NOC) Garvin Heera says his agency was aware of the police roadblocks before they were implemented on March 23.
He said so in an interview in response to claims by former national security minister Gary Griffith that the NOC and other intelligence agencies failed to do their respective jobs during the nationwide roadblocks.
T&T was brought to a standstill on that day as police officers conducted simultaneous roadblocks for six hours across the country, which adversely affected Caribbean Airline (CAL) flights, schools and businesses.
Griffith said yesterday the NOC, which was set up by him to provide real time information to citizens and other intelligence agencies, “fell flat during the nationwide roadblocks.”
He added: “The ball was dropped badly and the intelligence agencies were not doing their jobs. The NOC fell totally flat.”
Griffith noted such a development “will never have taken place under my watch,” adding while he was minister he took “a hands-on approach. Yes, I micro managed the NOC.”
He said while he was there he personally drafted the real-time releases that were issued by the NOC. He said when he left office three months ago the NOC had only issued two news releases, both on “insignificant issues.”
According to the former minister, “the NOC was supposed to give real-time information and to even co-ordinate a pre-emptive strike if necessary,” adding that in the past three months the NOC “had become nothing more than a building around the Queen’s Park Savannah... and that is truly comical.”
He said he was aware of the proposed roadblocks before they were initiated and wondered why the NOC and Special Branch were not also aware of the development.
But NOC director Garvin Heera said his agency was aware of the development. He said the NOC received a word on the intended roadblocks shortly before 5 am that day and communicated the information to the Ministry of National Security.
Heera said: “We could not give that information to the public and affect the police operation.”
He said it was a police exercise and “not an inter-agency operation.”
Heera said because it was to be a “sole police exercise” there was no request for additional resources to support the operation. He said, however, when it was evident there was gridlock across the nation “air assets of the NOC were launched to provide situation awareness.”
He insisted the NOC continued to do the work it was established to do.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (North West) Vincel Edwards conducted an investigation into the incident and one of his major recommendations was for the Government to establish a commission of enquiry to determine who was to blame for it.
But Griffith said that would not serve any useful purpose and the Government should instead conduct an audit into the Police Service.
The former minister said the enquiry would only be a witch-hunt.
He insisted that since he was replaced by Brigadier Carl Alfonso as minister “national security is no longer a front-burning issue for the Government and several initiatives were being dismantled.”