THE MURDEROUS invasion of the Kingston Public Hospital on Wednesday has shattered the relative lull in criminal activity which prevailed over the holiday season.
This has happened with the new year less than a week old and in a manner described by Police Commissioner Francis Forbes himself as an episode of terrorism. And indeed it is, for the fatal shootings inside and within the environs of the island's largest hospital bear the hallmarks of professional planning by ruthless killers.
It is incredible that despite heightened police security after Tuesday's drive-by shooting at the KPH gate four gunmen disguised as hospital porters were able to invade the institution on Wednesday.
This brazen defiance of the law is in the same mode of the street battles with gangs in eastern Kingston last year. It suggests that organised crime remains viable and adequately armed despite the latest efforts at containment.
The most alarming aspect of Wednesday's episode is that security at the KPH is so vulnerable even with the special measures put in place after Tuesday's incident.
And bear in mind that in past years patients have been shot in the KPH, the Mona Rehabilitation Centre and stabbed to death in the Spanish Town Hospital.
There has to be a radical overhaul in this area for an institution which caters to sick people and must be able to accommodate both administrative and professional staff as well as visitors at scheduled times.
The KPH is located in the heart of volatile communities. Over the years the institution has endured high levels of trauma in having to cater to victims of violence of every sort. This hospital must be made safe and secure from terrorist attack.
It should not be beyond the capacity of the Ministries of Health and National Security to tackle the problem with the urgency it warrants.
The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner.
