Crime and the Harmony Cove Development
published: Monday | June 20, 2005

THE EDITOR, Sir:

I AM not surprised to hear Kingsley Thomas on the Hot 102 mid-day news of May 16, mentioning that there was a concern about the effect that the high crime rate will have on the Harmony Cove Development. I am overly concerned especially the fact that Trelawny, the parish in which this development as well as the new cricket stadium is slated to be constructed, held the record as the parish with the lowest crime rate for many years. The parish, however, has seen several incidents of crime including murder in the past 12 months. I do hope that the new crime officer in charge of this region will be able to stem this.

It is my belief that if the authorities had nipped things in the bud at the first sign of escalation the crime rate would not have escalated to where it is now. It is the criminals that are using intelligence not the security forces. The criminals realised that the authorities are concentrating their efforts on certain selected communities which have a low crime rate, thereby, leaving the criminals to run free wrecking havoc on the rest of the island. I am suggesting that the police in the various parishes set up border patrols, not only on the main thoroughfares but on secondary entrances and exits. They can also solicit the help of citizens by encouraging them to place what they know in the offering plates at churches and suggestion boxes at workplaces and deposit boxes at banks.

Recruiting an officer from overseas just does not cut it. In the case of the recruited DCP he is approaching the issue of crime with the same biases as the local officers. Just like the imported coaches for cricket and football. They came, they saw but are unable to conquer.

I am, etc.,

R. BRYAN

Clarkes Town

Trelawny