THE ULTIMATE GOAL

Feb 23, 2017 Editorial, Features / Columnists

Much has been said about the high crime rate in the country, but efforts to solve it are not effective. It is almost as if there is hope that it will magically fix itself. Without a doubt, the biggest concern of most of the citizens in the country is the high crime rate, especially murders, armed robberies and rapes. Crime continues to plague the nation and despite some improvement in arresting the criminals and some changes in the police force, those in authority seem incapable to find a solution to the problem.
The murders with impunity of so many young men is one thing, but the killings of innocent senior citizens, young women and children are quite another.
The government has spent tens of millions of taxpayers’ monies to sanitize the symptoms of crime but little on the root cause of it. If crime is allowed to continue at the present rate, the country’s reputation and image could be damaged to the point of no return.
After twenty-one months in office, the government has not been able to develop long-term strategies to solve crime. Its focus has been on short term solution which is always easier, but it never truly alleviates the underlying problems of crime, such as joblessness, poverty and the lack of proper education.
Many believe that Guyana has evolved into a lawless society and governments both past and present are responsible for this occurrence. They have and continue to ignore the root causes of crime. However, there is still hope. The process of combatting crime must start with the effective socialization of children in schools. Educators and all other stakeholders in society must be involved in the education and development of the nation’s children. Solving crime must begin in the classroom.
Many are alarmed to see the monsters and demons that society has continued to create as a result of poverty, lack of jobs and poor policy formation. Crime will not be solved by rules created by individuals who have very little knowledge of it and who have never been professionally associated with a classroom environment.
Schools are the places where children are taught to obey rules and regulations that govern society. The skills acquired from schools would lay the foundation for good and decent citizens beyond the parameters of the classroom. However, in recent times this has not been the case. Some schools are unconsciously evolving into institutions where student drop-outs and lawlessness among students are prevalent. Others have created an environment that tolerates disrespect of teachers.
Incidents of students assaulting one another and teachers are widespread, yet many are surprised of youth involvement in gang violence and the heinous crimes against innocent citizens.
Guyana is part of the contemporary world where children are exposed to a variety of uncensored information from social media. Many are poor, and others are faced with a host of socio-economic issues that have made the task of socialization in schools difficult and their involvement in gang violence and criminal acts easy.
Be that as it may, schools must be seen as the backbone for obtaining a proper education and instilling values that are synonymous with integrity and decency to students. Schools must provide an avenue for effective learning and be the catalyst for invoking positive change in society. At no time must wrongdoing or criminal acts be accepted or tolerated in schools or by society. It will lead to more crime. Solving crime requires the best efforts of government, educators, stakeholders, policy-makers and the man in the street. Everyone must do their part to reduce crime, and saving Guyana should be their ultimate goal.

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