By Roy Sanford, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
SAYING THE murder rate in the tourism capital of Montego Bay, St. James had to be brought quickly under control, Dr. Horace Chang, a deputy leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and Member of Parliament for St. James North West, is renewing his call for a summit between business and civic groups.
Last week, Sanchez Porter, 18, and his 16-year-old brother became the latest casualties of what Dr. Chang described as the 'severe problem' being faced by the second city.
Dr. Chang said he was hoping that the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce, the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association and the Social Development Commission would arrange a meeting as quickly as possible to discuss measures aimed at reducing crime in Montego Bay. "The reduction of the murder rate in Montego Bay is crucial to its continued success as a major tourist destination," Dr. Chang said.
He noted that the arrival of Senior Superintendent Paul Ferguson, who is replacing Superintendent Newton Amos as head of the St. James Police Division, provided the perfect opportunity for the leaders in Montego Bay to meet with the police to analyse the problem.
He said a new initiative was needed by the police force if the crime problem is to be addressed in the second city. He also called for "a technology drive, a modern intelligence-gathering unit coupled with more community-based policing to improve the effectiveness of the police and the relationship between citizens and the police."
He said that Montego Bay should become a model for the introduction of COMPSTAT, a computer-based intelligence system used successfully to reduce crime in New York City. "COMPSTAT collects, monitors, analyses and maps crime data," he said. "This will facilitate real-time data and improve intelligence gathering and make the police more effective in crime prevention."
Edmund Bartlett, JLP spokesman on tourism, said that a crime summit would be useful for Montego Bay at this time, but he warned that there should be resolve on the part of all stakeholders in Montego Bay if it was to be successful.
"A crime summit will be valuable is there is a resolve to act based on a specific plan of action and with the necessary resources to support such a plan," he told The Gleaner on Saturday. "A summit by itself is not enough."
