Police officers want money instead of medals for service during State of Emergency

Port-of-Spain: The joint trade union movement has described the decision by the government to award public service medals to members of the police service who served during the just ended 107 day State of Emergency, as an insult to police officers.

The Police Social and Welfare Association has already rejected the offer to award medals to their membership.

It's a position which the joint trade union movement says it fully supports since it views the decision by the government to hand out medals to the officers as a public relations stunt.

The labour group says while it supports recognition of officers it believes  payment of a monetary reward and the settlement of outstanding negotiations would be a much better form of recognition for the sacrifice made by police officers who worked during the State of Emergency.

It is in their words scandalous, unethical, ludicrous, unrealistic and hypocritical on the part of the prime minister and her government to insist on a five percent salary increase for police officers while offering medals in an effort to boost the morale of the police service.

It also wants to know why the decision was taken without consultation with the Police Social and Welfare Association.