A national approach must be taken to combat crime, says Golding

January 25, 2022

A national approach must be taken to combat crime, says Golding

Opposition Leader and President of the People’s of National Party (PNP), Senator Mark Golding, has issued an urgent appeal for the governing body to utilise a national approach in combatting the surge of crime.

This plea was made at a press briefing this morning, where the primary emphasis was placed on tackling the issue of crime with practical solutions along with elaborating on the banking services bill.

Senator Mark Golding noted that the prolonged use of the State of Emergencies (SOEs) from 2017 to 2020 has proven to be ineffective and has brought a prolonged disappointment to the masses, as it has brought no meaningful reduction in the number of murders at the national level.

“For over a year, we’ve recovered very few guns, very few thousands of detainees were ever charged for serious offenses,” Golding argued.

“Criminal gangs remained intact simply by moving into other areas where security forces are absent. No sustained benefits for our society in terms of long-term reductions in rates of violent crime was achieved in the State of Emergencies,” Golding added.

Golding also argued that since the implementation of the SOEs in November 2021, there has been a steady increase in the levels of violent crimes in the areas where the States of Emergencies have been declared.

Golding is therefore urging the Government to utilise the Zones of Special Operations (ZOSO) legislations as an effective crime-fighting tool as it provides both the military and the police an opportunity to secure communities that are plagued with internal violence and are deemed out of control.

“When it is declared, the JDF personnel have full policing power within the area of the ZOSO, and law enforcement in that area is under the joint power of the JCF and the JDF,” Golding noted.

Golding further noted that the Zones of Special Operations need to be viewed as a legal alternative to fight crime rather than the imposed State of Emergency.

Other crime-fighting legislations that were proposed include, enhancing the security measures act as well as the Firearms Act, strengthening the security forces, utilising more crime management programmes, and also transforming the education system.