THE SUGGESTION by Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas to re-locate residents of downtown Kingston as a means of assisting the police to put a damper on crime, might be entertaining after-luncheon material, but in the realm of practicality, there are questions to be answered. How far, how wide would be the area of clearance? Where would the people be relocated to and at whose expense?
Despite the Commissioner's colourful analogy of "four-footed vermin and two-footed vagabonds," downtown is also populated by decent, law-abiding citizens whose only crime is that they live in a rundown, neglected and even dangerous environment.
They too are the victims of "the vermin and the vagabonds". To bundle them all up under one heading and dispose of them somewhere, anywhere, would certainly be an injustice and, they (and we) may well ask, what is the proof that their departure would rid the city of crime?
We can well understand Commissioner Thomas' need to find some quick solution to the crime challenge. We all search for it but experience and common sense tell us that the enemy being fought is not going to be conquered by simplistic ideas. There have been many attempts to clean up downtown Kingston and still the solution to the problem eludes us. Yet, we must keep trying.
Over the years, entities like the Kingston Restoration Company (KRC), the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), the churches and private sector initiative, have made valiant efforts to bring a harmonious balance to downtown Kingston, plagued as it is by a decaying environment and criminal activity. A many-faceted and consistent, practical strategy is clearly what is needed. There have been too many stop-start programmes, too many inconsistencies in the strategies undertaken.
The formation two years ago of the Kingston City Improvement Company seemed to offer promise of a new direction by way of a partnership between the Government and the private sector. To date, however, progress has been very slow. We need to call on all the participating agencies, Government and private sector alike to take the matter more seriously and show greater urgency in their efforts. Colourful speeches and popular rhetoric will not save the day. A city needs people to give it life. Its difficulties will not be solved by sweeping its problems under the carpet or by pipe dreams of spiriting the people away.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
