Trevor C. Joseph
Retired regular Police #15602
E-mail Address: trevorcjoseph@yahoo.com
Monday 2nd October, 2006

Honourable Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago
The Commissioner of Police Trinidad and Tobago
Human Rights Organizations.
Online Forums.

I’m not rude. I just don’t know what to do. Is there someone out there in this World who will tell me what to do? Hear what it is: I haven’t got a cent yet as any payment like gratuity or pension. It is almost 2 years now since I am retired as a regular Police #15602. Almost 4 years since I submitted my part of the requirements for retirement, as I had reached the age that I must. It is past 10 years since I started to find out what to do so that, no-money-after-retirement, would not happen to me also.

Efforts included letters written by the Police Association and myself to persons including the Prime Minister Trinidad and Tobago, the Minister of National Security, the Comptroller of accounts, the Commissioner of Police and Government Departments where I was sent to work as an SRP. I was a Special Reserve Police before I was absorpbed into the regular police as 15602 Joseph on 26th January 2001 but SRP full time service from 16th April 1996 is where they said they will start to count from, for pension and gratuity.

So they made deductions retroactive from that date for pension and gratuity. I did full time work more than once before that date. I was told to go and get a record of service from the Government Departments where they themselves had sent me to work before that said date, and it will be added to my service so that I will have about 13 years service and qualify for pension being over 10 years service.

I believed them because any fool can see April 1996 to May 2005 will only be 9 years and 2 Months. Not 10 years. So if they knew that they were not going to pay me pension, as my service would not reach 10 years without what they send me to get, why did they seize a back pay I expected to pay retroactive pension and Gratuity payments from 1996, and send the fool to get records?

Concerning my pension? Those SRPs who elected to accept money and leave instead of continuing so that they could get pension, got the money based on the amount of years as an SRP on full time duty. So it is easy to believe that my service before April 1996 will also contribute to my finals for Pension.

After a number of “come back, come back” for about nearly 2 years, I got the documents. Now I am going to find out that the same SRP office that sent me to get it had to approve it and say “yes he really did work those times and dates.” They had the records all the time yet acted like they had lost it. Number 3300 was my SRP number from 21st August 1989.

This letter is too long already, so let me get to the conclusion. For over 2 years now, the Department that handles Gratuity and Pension is telling me that they are waiting on a directive from this one or the other.

The Prime Minister’s Office replied after getting information from the Police, that I will only be paid Gratuity at the rate of 1/12th of a Month’s pay for every year worked as my TTPS service from 16th April 1996 to 28th May 2005 was not 10 years. Yet the Police do not want to comply with the very information they gave the Prime Minister. His directive. They are stalling with tactics to dilute more and more any money I should get, until it fades into nothing, like if it is their money from their business.

The Prime Minister’s office replied more than once like if we are pen pals (which he doesn’t have time for) and let me know finally about 2 years ago that I could check with the Commissioner now which to me means every thing is fixed so that he won’t have to spend time writing me pen pal letters.

If it was a Contractor who did not want to pay his workers, using hide and seek tactics, in this manner repeatedly, the same Police would have locked him up for distressing the public and call him an adjective bandit.

Concerning Pension again? Money was deducted up to the last Salary I received at the end of May 2005 for pension and Gratuity. It is this Government that took that out.

As I said, I do not know what to do. I am furious yet I have to be polite in my fury. What do they expect me to do after my last salary. What is their commitment to me and others like me?

Will anyone out there tell me what to do?

Disgusted