Black and proud.

That was how Defence Minister Wayne Sturge yesterday described the majority ethnic composition of the National Security Council as he shut down the Opposition’s “racist” criticisms of Government’s proposed Zones of Special Operations (ZOSO), which it claimed would target people of African descent in People’s National Movement (PNM) constituencies.

Speaking at a news conference at the United National Congress (UNC) Chaguanas headquarters, Sturge said the Government’s move to implement ZOSO was not driven by race, but by strategy, with the aim of ensuring the safety and security of law-abiding citizens.