It is no surprise that Government is receiving severe blows for its ineffective response to the spiralling crime situation gripping the country at present.
Over the past few days, bandits have been creating havoc in communities across the country and citizens are expressing a deep sense of fear that they could be pounced upon at any time. We have seen the most brazen attacks recently which have left many businesses and ordinary citizens wondering when the authorities would be able to get a firm grip and arrest the situation once and for all.
To begin with, Government, in particular the Public Security Minister, seems incapable of dealing with the crime situation. To date, in spite of a number of brazen attacks, the authorities are just making promises to citizens that the security situation in the country will improve. The bottom line is that citizens are losing patience with Government, particularly the sector that is responsible for ensuring citizens enjoy some level of comfort and safety. Citizens are demanding more from those elected to serve their interests and it is only reasonable that they fulfil those expectations.
As recent as Friday morning, gunmen stormed the Princess Casino in the most daring attack in recent times our country has experienced. It was reported that during the early morning robbery, several persons were injured and the gunmen escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash.
One would think that considering the high level of security systems in place at such a secured business establishment, the gunmen would have been hesitant to launch such a brazen attack on the premises. However, from all indications, the gunmen were not scared at all.
Also on Thursday, in broad daylight, armed bandits entered a La Penitence grocery shop in another brazen robbery attack, in the process shooting the owner of the business establishment and escaping with cash. In addition to these two cases, there were many other daring robberies over the past few weeks carried out against both businesses and individuals; and certainly the level of fear and uncertainty is increasing in society.
These most recent cases should serve as a reminder that criminal elements are coming up with new and more sophisticated methods in carrying out their criminal acts and certainly the security apparatus of the State should take this into consideration.
From all indications, it seems as if the bandits are now acting with impunity as there is no fear whatsoever of the law enforcement officers. This could be due to the fact that government has been sending mixed signals in relation to its position on crime.
There is a perception that the President is more concerned about pardoning criminals as against sending a strong signal to everyone that no form of criminality will be condoned
While pardoning prisoners is not entirely a bad action, the fact that government has kept the identities of the criminals hidden from the public, portrays the message that these criminals are being protected. It should be noted that these pardoned prisoners were convicted not of nonviolent crimes but of “hardcore ones.”
Further, it must be noted that the Administration has taken a laid back approach to dealing with the crime situation, Many are asking where is the crime prevention plan that APNU/AFC boasted about during the May 2015 General and Regional Elections campaign.
Certainly, the statistics so far in relation to serious crimes are worrying and underscore the need for urgent action by the Ministry of Public Security and the relevant law enforcement agencies.
Government must provide the resources needed to fight crime, eg more patrol vehicles, manpower, and so on. Additionally, there is dire need for the police to step up efforts as it relates to more intelligence-led policing. Building better community relations will certainly go a far way in helping them to be successful in this regard.
At present, the general perception is that government is powerless, ineffectual, and out of their league in fighting crime. We are almost midway of 2016, and the situation does not look as if it is improving, especially as it relates to the number of armed robberies taking place.
We urge government to revisit the issue of the increasing crime rate and take the necessary action that will hopefully result in some sense of order and decency.
