End the double standards! Stop the crime!

Mar 25, 2016 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

A poor fast food delivery man was set upon by a bandit and shot. He is now nursing injuries in the hospital. Another working class individual was not that lucky. A mini bus driver was shot by one of two men who wanted to rob him. He has succumbed to his injuries.
These were two ordinary workers trying to make a living the honest, hard way, the way they know best, by working. These persons were shot. One of them died as a result.
Several days ago, a man in a hotel was robbed of cash. There is a striking similarity in the three attacks, except that in the latter case the victim was not shot.
Is this the sort of news that is going to encourage Guyanese to come home for the big 50th birthday bash in May? Those coming home for the May celebrations would already have had to book their airline tickets. There can be no cancellation at this stage without losing the cost of the airfare. People therefore who have booked will be here in Guyana, and they will be concerned about the spate of armed robberies in the country.
Why should foreigners risk coming to Guyana? To see a battalion do a military parade and see people scream and cry when a flag is raised? Is this the reason why people are going to spend thousands of United States dollars?
The main hotels in Guyana are fully booked for May 2016. And so if there is any mass cancellation of guests for that period, it will seriously hurt the economy. Guyana cannot afford this. Guyana’s image will take a battering if its marquee anniversary event on May 26 flops because of security concerns.
The government is claiming that the police are making arrests. Well, the police always make arrests, but each day we are reading about the record of some suspects who were previously charged for serious offences but who were acquitted. The fact that the police are making arrests is no comfort for those concerned about the security situation. It is certainly no comfort, either, for the victims of criminal attacks.
Prevention is better than cure. People want the crime to stop, to go away, to disappear. This is the main reason why a great many people voted for the coalition. They voted for the coalition because they were fed up with crime. People do not want to live in fear and uncertainty. People had hoped that the APNU+AFC administration would have brought about a serious decline in crime. Instead the situation is getting worse.
People had become frustrated with the PPP’s handling of crime. They felt APNU and the AFC would have done better. But they are not seeing the evidence that things are about to get better anytime soon
The criminals in this country have no regard for human life. They shot and killed a mini bus driver without any regard to how this man’s family will survive. They shot a fast food delivery man without any concern that this man was working to provide for his family. These criminals seem to have no conscience. Operation Dragnet seems to be dragging behind. We are told that the army should not be involved in crime-fighting; that this is the responsibility of the police. Yet a member of the army was being used to undertake surveillance of a man’s home. That poor soldier met his death. He had two small children. Who is taking care of them? What disciplinary action has been taken against whoever ordered a solider to undertake criminal surveillance work?
No wonder crime is on the upsurge. There are too many double standards.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News