THE ULTIMATE test of any crime plan must be that it works. In this instance, the Prime Minister has set no deadline target as he told the nation that this latest initiative will be maintained "as long as it takes".
That leaves ample room to counter the inevitable criticisms that will come if the scourge of killings, in particular, continue unabated. Given the range of suggested "solutions" that preceded the launch of the initiative there will also be ample scope for critique of both policy and performance.
The security forces, boosted in terms of personnel and equipment, will bear the brunt of the battle. Clearly the illegal guns aren't lying in wait to be seized; nor indeed are the gangsters relaxing in their usual haunts. So the challenge is for smart detective work, unless the gangs opt for brazen defiance of authority and a street war that could be bloody and frightening.
The investigative challenge rests crucially on the ability to gain the intelligence to form the basis for action; and in this respect the history of police community relations is not perceived as favourable. This is even more crucial where the criminal links spread beyond the inner city and, as the Prime Minister himself has said, "with significant international links". The local masterminds must be brought to book before any success can be claimed.
The whole scenario demands national consensus at all levels - political, administrative and from the people themselves. It is the citizens en masse who may feel helpless to defend themselves. Those who have relevant information must be persuaded to share it with appropriate agencies.
The long-term aspect of the anti-crime initiative is the programme of economic and social renewal which will involve Parliament and the legislative machinery. The objective here is obviously ongoing.
One specific area of potential controversy is the projected resumption of hanging for the crime of capital murder. Our own view has been in accord with the majority view that while the death penalty remains the law of the land the administration should obey it.
Here again, the requisite investigative skills must be sharpened to bring to justice those who murder at will, elude the law, and spread fear in the land.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
