President of Trinidad and Tobago, Christine Kangaloo, has used her Independence Day message to lament the level of crime and violence in the twin island republic.
Trinidad is observing its 64th anniversary of independence today, Monday.
The police report that more than 250 murders were recorded in the country for the first eight months of 2026. More than a third of them were reportedly committed by gangs, 180 of which are said to be operating in the country.
President Kangaloo says too many families have been left to grieve as a result.
She says stewardship is important to independence and calls on her countrymen to extend a higher duty of care for the nation entrusted to them.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar in her independence day message, says the republic should be further ahead given the foundation inherited from Britain.
