Leader of the Opposition Allen Chastanet has called for decisive action on escalating crime and suggested that Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre distance himself from Housing Minister Richard Frederick who is facing widespread criticism for naming individuals as criminals and urging police to go after them.
In a strongly-worded letter to Pierre, dated January 3, and which he shared on his Facebook page, Chastanet highlighted a history of unpunished homicides and the recent surge in killings, which reached an unprecedented 80 in 2024.
He revisited the 2010-2011 killings investigated under the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), amid allegations of extrajudicial killings involving police officers, facilitated by politicians, and business figures.
Chastanet charged that the unresolved killings from that period “are not disconnected from the homicides that have plagued our country over the last three years”. He suggested that systemic failures have emboldened criminals and undermined citizen confidence in law enforcement.
A significant portion of his letter was highly critical of the actions of Minister Frederick, whose public statements and actions have sparked widespread criticism. Chastanet accused the Castries Central MP of recklessly naming individuals as criminals on his television programme, Can I Help You?, and making inflammatory remarks that could incite vigilantism.
During the final 2024 episode of his programme, Frederick named several individuals, labeling them as criminals and claiming to have video footage of their activities. He went further, threatening to air these images in future episodes of his programme.
Frederick’s comments also included a controversial call for police to arrest specific individuals on sight, which Chastanet described as a potential echo of the extrajudicial actions detailed in the IMPACS report. “What to make of televised instructions to the police ‘to declare war’ on targets selected by your Housing Minister?” he asked, warning of the risks of history repeating itself.
The opposition leader also expressed alarm over Frederick’s claims a few weeks ago of having insider police information. During a televised broadcast, the minister allegedly boasted about a “pile of information” provided by police officers regarding private citizens.
“Your Housing Minister actually crowed on TV that police officers surreptitiously kept him informed about the comings and goings of private citizens,” Chastanet pointed out.
“Your Housing Minister’s televised threats and orders to police are eerily reminiscent of the dark days of Operation Restore Confidence,” he further wrote, referring to the controversial police operations implicated in the IMPACS report.
The letter also highlighted Frederick’s history of controversial remarks, including a recent attack on a renowned broadcaster. Chastanet condemned the attack as a vile and unprovoked assault on an iconic figure.
The opposition leader urged the Prime Minister to distance himself from Frederick and consider removing him from Cabinet.
“Prime Minister, will you at least dissociate yourself and your party from your Housing Minister’s potential unlawful orders to the police?” he questioned.
“Will you expunge the Independent MP Richard Frederick from your Cabinet and the Office of the Prime Minister? Or will you also disdain this appeal on behalf of the nearly 40 000 affronted citizens I am privileged to represent as the Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Saint Lucia? Sir, the ball is in your court.”
Chastanet’s letter concluded with an appeal to prioritise public safety over political interests.
“Let us…agree to set aside partisan aspirations and put first the safety of our people,” he urged Pierre.
