Officers not supporting extended run as Fire Chief for Bristo

Fire Service Association of Trinidad and Tobago president Keone Guy is questioning a possible proposal to extend the tenure of chief fire officer Arnold Bristo.

However, both Bristo and National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds have refused to comment on the claim and have distanced themselves from what Hinds called “rumours.”

During a media briefing at the association’s (Second Division) office in Barataria yesterday, Guy claimed that information recently circulating suggested that Bristo may be granted an extension of service beyond his mandatory retirement age in December.

“The association has been informed by credible sources that Mr Bristo may have applied for an extension of his service or a buyout of his vacation leave. However, we must emphasise that there is no legal framework in place that authorises such an extension. Granting it would be contrary to the provisions of both the constitution of Trinidad and Tobago and the Fire Service Act,” Guy said.

He added while there have been efforts to improve the operations of the Fire Service under Bristo’s leadership, he claimed the industry continues to be handicapped by major challenges including funding and resources.

“When Mr Bristo came into office we had quite high hopes. We had anticipated improvement in the quality of vehicles, we had hoped to see better equipment for the officers and unfortunately that has not been done. So if I’m to sum up Mr Bristo’s tenure, I’ll have to say its quite disappointing,” Guy added.

On August 12 attorneys, acting on behalf of the association, sent a letter to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley expressing opposition to any extension of Bristo’s service that may be considered and called for clarity on the matter.

“The association has given me the instructions to communicate with your good self on this matter out of an abundance of caution and looks forward to a response from your administration disavowing that it is considering the grant of an extension of the service of Mr Bristo,” the letter stated.

Guy said while there has been no response from the Prime Minister, he maintained that the association was in support of the proper running of the service. However, he said they will not support any extension of Bristo’s tenure.

When asked to comment on the concerns of the association, Hinds said he will not be drawn into the realm of rumours.

“I do not propose to waste one moment of my very valuable time on that level of conversation,” he said.

Chief Fire Officer Arnold Bristo also sidestepped the association’s speculations.

Meanwhile, Guy maintained that the operations of the Fire Service across the country continued to be impacted by a lack of funding, and critical resources.

“We are indeed in crisis mode, our assessment then a month ago was accurate and we continue to maintain that those 20 breathing apparatus sets, even though they were supplied to us by the private sector, it does little to our response capabilities. That is because they do no benefit from the infrastructure we already have in place,” the association president explained.

Hinds had previously refuted claims that the Fire Service was in shambles and that efforts were made to procure equipment.

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