‘Popular St. George’s Taxi driver and political activist with the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Martin “Cat Eye” Lawrence believes that a police officer is trying to make trouble for him because of his association.

The taxi operator walked into the office of GRENADA TODAY on St. John’s Street last Wednesday to highlight his plight. “Cat Eye” who drives around in a bright yellow bus, the colour of the Congress party, said that he is deeply concerned with what he sees as an injustice being done to him.

He complained of a member of the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) informing him that he cannot pick up cruise ship passengers due to the bright yellow colour of his bus. According to “Cat Eye”, the police officer approached him while he was on Granby Street in St George waiting for some tourists who were shopping in the city.

He claimed that the uniformed police told him that he would have to change the colour of his vehicle if he wanted to pick up tourists to the island. The taxi driver said he ignored the threat because the police officer had made that statement to him on previous occasions.
“Cat Eye” stated that he regarded the statement as just a joke, only to realise that the officer was dead serious this time around.

The NDC activist who has been a taxi driver for more than 20 years stressed that he had never heard such stupidness in all his life. “What are we coming in Grenada?” he asked.

The Taxi driver considers himself to be a professional in his area of work, as well as an ambassador for Grenada. “Cat Eye” strongly feels that he is being targeted because of his known public support of the NDC. He said that he has brought the matter to the attention of a senior member of the Police High Command who has assured him that the complaint will be dealt with.

The local police force is also known to be divided along political lines with several officers who supported the ruling New National Party (NNP) government in the 1995 and 1999 general elections switching over to Congress in the 2001 poll.

Police insiders have said that the Keith Mitchell-led NNP regime is trying to woo back disgruntled police officers with a soon-to-be launched housing project in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan.