CoP defends TTPS overtime bill amid mounting scrutiny

Com­mis­sion­er of Po­lice Al­lis­ter Gue­var­ro is de­fend­ing the Trinidad and To­ba­go Po­lice Ser­vice’s (TTPS) $800 mil­lion over­time bill as the ser­vice faces in­tense scruti­ny over pay­ments ac­crued dur­ing the three States of Emer­gency (SoEs) de­clared be­tween 2024 and 2026.

Con­tact­ed yes­ter­day on the is­sue, Gue­var­ro point­ed to what he de­scribed as the “dark side” of the de­mands placed on rank-and-file of­fi­cers. Ad­dress­ing the fig­ures re­port­ed by the TTPS Fi­nance Branch and Le­gal Unit, he said the over­time bill was noth­ing new.

“The TTPS over­time bill is no se­cret. It’s be­tween $400 mil­lion and $500 mil­lion an­nu­al­ly, and that’s with­out an SoE,” he said.