THE EDITOR, Sir:
I HOPE the information that I read in The Gleaner (May 8, 2005) is incorrect concerning a statement from Member of Parliament Dr. Horace Chang. In this article it is reported that the honourable MP has declared that it is not his responsibility to report the names of criminal elements in his constituency to the police.
As a Jamaican national, deeply concerned about crime and very embarrassed by the unbelievably high murder rate in the country, I can only hope that politicians such as Dr. Chang would be cognisant of the fact that fighting crime is a civic responsibility of all the citizenry and that he as a Member of Parliament has sworn to uphold the law.
AN EMBARRASSMENT
It is an embarrassment for a country with no known declared civil war to have our murder rate rivalling and surpassing even countries in known and declared war or civil strife. So, for the honourable MP to declare that it is not his responsibility to make such report, I have one question for Dr. Chang: If you the MP have no civic or moral duty to report known criminal elements in your constituency, then who does?
I think that as an MP there is certain basic leadership that is expected of the honourable gentleman and he is not stepping up to the plate. The MP should be ashamed for making such utterance, if the news report is accurate. How could the police or even he as MP call on the ordinary citizen to play their part in keeping the community safe from criminal elements when the MP has declared that he has no responsibility in that regard?
MPS MUST PLAY THEIR PART
I think that civic-minded Jamaicans at home and abroad wish for significant reduction in our current crime rates especially incidents of murder and with recent attacks on the security forces EVERY Jamaican including (and especially) MPs MUST play their part and accept the responsibility to assist the law enforcement agencies in whatever way possible to help rid the local communities of the scourge of criminality that is running rampant and is out of control in the country.
We are way past the point where MPs can continue to abdicate their responsibility to make meaningful contribution to the maintenance of law and order as a civic and moral duty. The country and especially law-abiding citizens must stop cuddling politicians whose utterances and behaviour would seem to give tacit support (through action and or inaction) to criminal elements within their communities.
I am, etc.,
SYLVESTER BOWIE
bowies@csus.edu
6000 J Street
Sacramento, California
USA
