ON A tour of a section of his constituency, accompanied by Commissioner of Police Lucius Thomas, Finance Minister Dr. Omar Davies was confronted by a resident who accused him of neglecting the constituency and, more particularly, of not taking a sufficiently strong stand to end tribal warfare in the area.
In one sense, this has thrown a refreshingly new light on the debate about the support, tacit or otherwise, of criminals and Dons by politicians of differing political stripes. Dr. Davies' accuser displayed a degree of bravery by raising the issue in public and was in no doubt that the Minister, had he chosen to do so, could have called a halt to the prolonged turf war.
In his defense, Dr. Davies says that he does not deal with criminals and gunmen, that it is the business of the police to handle such matters.
We find this statement somewhat disingenuous in light of the Minister's attendance some time ago at the funeral of Willie Haggart, a known area Don. And in leaving the police to put an end to constituency violence, one does not have to adopt a completely hands-off attitude.
A more pro-active role by the minister in trying to resolve the ongoing disputes would not necessarily compromise his stated position of not fraternizing with criminals. His intervention could have been primarily with the law-abiding citizens of the constituency and this would have helped to boost morale and would have sent a message to any of his misguided followers involved in the unrest.
This incident raises again the obfuscation, semantic gymnastics and empty legalisms which always seem to feature in any discussion of corruption generally and the matter of association with Dons and gunmen in particular.
We understand the predicament in which the minister finds himself, one that he shares with other politicians. Chickens may be coming home to roost and even if we are prepared to give politicians the benefit of the doubt they need to be reminded that actions speak louder than words.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
