PNP calls for crime fix in 2020

As the curtain comes down on 2019, the People's National Party (PNP) is again urging the Government to immediately put in place a workable plan to arrest Jamaica’s murder rate.

Opposition Spokesperson on National Security Fitz Jackson argues that Jamaica cannot afford another year of the kind of senseless killings and criminal aggravations which took place in and continued throughout 2019. 

He further contends that the Government  must signal to the country very early in the new year that there is a workable solution to stem the ongoing crime rate and give the citizenry hope of a safe and peaceful new year.

“ Without a proper plan, families and communities cannot be assured that their safety is a priority for the government,” said Jackson in a statement today.

According to Jackson, the PNP has presented a set of proposals to address the crime scourge and has been in dialogue with the government and other stakeholders but that the recommendations are yet to be taken up by the Andrew Holness administration. 

He said the PNP is firmly of the view that effective community policing, supported by the presence of Jamaica Defence Force personnel, would be a major step to address the issue of crime.

Additionally, he said that there is also need to significantly improve the investigative capabilities of the lawmen and provide adequate resources for the Jamaica Constabulary Force. 

At the community level, he said sustained social intervention programmes need to be rolled out in key violence-prone areas. 

“We cannot afford to lose even one more life at the hands of criminals and therefore the government must be held accountable to bring forward a plan of action to ensure the safety of our people. We, in the PNP, have given our commitment to work on a way forward and we stand by that commitment,” Jackson said.