By Andrew Clunis
Why can’t we all get along on the issue of crime?
We should all be relieved that we are no longer seeing upwards of 1600 people being murdered across the island every year.
The latest crime statistics are most encouraging. They show a 42 per cent reduction in murders overall and significant reductions in all other major crimes. In areas where there are Zones of Special Operations there has been a 79 percent reduction in murders.
These statistics should warm the heart of every single Jamaican, and we should celebrate these victories as we march towards the overall goal of having a more peaceful and safe Jamaica.
But even the positive results we are enjoying are not enough for some people. Peter Bunting, Opposition Spokesman on Crime and Security is not content with just taking the win on behalf of all Jamaicans. He has to throw a spanner in the works by way of politics.
His comment that only the police and not the government deserves credit for the reduction in crime is most incredible and disingenuous. One would expect better from him being a former Minister of the portfolio which so challenged him that he had to beg for divine intervention. He knows it is no easy job but politics has a way of disrobing otherwise erudite men. He has the desire to once again hold that office and would he not take credit for any gains that are made under his administration?
Mr Bunting should recognise the folly of his ways and the looseness of his tongue and demonstrate to the Jamaican people that a government of which is a part would not seek to set us back on crime. And that they would continue on the path that Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness, National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang and Police Commissioners Major General Antony Anderson and Dr Kevin Blake have trod.
Dr Kevin Blake has been proving himself to be the right man for the job at the right time. He has been very astute in his leadership of the police force and has put theory into practical application which is leading to the results we are seeing. He has been building steadily on the foundation laid by his predecessor Anderson.
As a result, the police force now seems more dedicated and capable to take the fight to the criminals and have them on the back foot. The disruption and dismantling of gangs speak volumes to the extent to which we are seeing a society where the authorities are taking back control and ridding our social and economic spaces of the vermin who only seek to create disorder and chaos. The high profiled sentencing of people like Tesha Miller and Andre Blackman Brian plus the effective elimination of gang leaders and members has given the police room in which to implement control strategies.
It is a multi-pronged approach and coupled with the wide scale recovery of guns and ammunition it appears poised to reap fruit for some time to come.
This must be an all-of-Jamaica effort and as long as the government continues to cut the cheques which represent unmatched investment in the fight against crime, all the major players deserve our extolment and support.