Police and crime fighting

Aug 08, 2024 Editorial

Kaieteur News – There is a noticeable rise in crimes across the country murder and robbery under arms have become commonplace on our streets, which is a cause for serious concerns. Citizens are being killed, robbed- some deliberately targeted, others randomly shot, as gunfire and the mayhem that it produces touched the lives and communities of Guyanese from different walks of life.

Although boasting of a drop in serious crimes the truism that perception very often mirrors reality rings true in Guyana and the general view seems to be that citizens are at the mercy of marauding elements bent on disrupting their peace and security. Only recently Attorney General, Anil Nandlall admitted that “the Government is not comfortable with the level of crime and violence in the society and that is no secret.” He went on to say that the government is working assiduously to address the situation, noting that several pieces of legislation are on the cards, although acknowledging that “legislations are not the singular remedy that can comprehensively and successfully address this problem. We have to have a multi-faceted approach, so we will take to the parliament shortly a bill that will increase penalties for different categories of offences.”

Truth be told the PPP/C Government has been saying the same things about crime fighting since it was confronted with the mayhem that stemmed from the February 2022 Camp Street Prison break. The multifaceted approach to which Nandlall referred and all the other sound bites would not solve the crime problem. At the heart of crime fighting in this country is a crooked Guyana Police Force where officers from top to bottom have been so tainted that some citizens do not even bother to make complaints of crimes committed against them. The recent revelations in the press of the bribery and money laundering that have enveloped that entity are enough to explain why we are in this state violence.

Ask any Guyanese the proper questions about crime and guns, and most are likely to give responses that speak to dread and an abiding fear. Check on the state of any community, and residents are frank in the precautions they have to take, how they are concerned about the presence of so many guns, and the apparent inability of the GPF to make a difference in the frightening presence of so many weapons, many illegal. Even within gated communities, and the presence of armed sentries manning entrances and exits, there is a healthy worry about crime and guns.

It is this endless tide of guns that is present in local society, and that are clearly on the streets and primed for action in the commission of crimes, and the settlement of disputes. Though it is a hit and miss operation, the GPF could consider doing more sweep and interception operations.  The key is the element of surprise, and once that holds, there is a solid probability that a gun or two could be netted, on each such occasion. Once properly thought out, and well implemented, there could be results, no matter how miniscule.  It stands to reason that because guns are so prevalent on the streets and in the many communities of Guyana, there is the strong likelihood of guns being found on persons, or in vehicles, and charges being laid. At the least, such exercises by the GPF would serve as a deterrent from the almost routine presence of firearms on the ground in Guyana.  The effects are many, and range from the psychological to the physical, among others.

In such an environment characterized by an almost pervasive fear of crime, people are understandably very apprehensive for their personal safety.  Such a situation demands a coherent and comprehensive operational policy to respond to a menace that is likely to overwhelm the country’s law enforcement efforts against illegal guns and ammunition. At present there seems to be no properly articulated strategy to address this phenomenon; if one does exist it is probably in the minds of the operatives.
However, the issue really should be whether the strategists are working within a framework which requires that lessons learned must be recorded so as to inform on the level of success or shortfall as the case might be.  The days of ad hoc approaches to crime have surely passed, but this does not seem to be the realization of our operational policy makers.

The solution to gun crimes lies not in stricter legislation for firearm licensing control, because the problem we face is one which involves illegal firearms in the hands of people with no compunction about taking lives. Moreover, gun control laws are focused on law abiding people who for the most part are not about to arm themselves without seeking to ensure that they are in compliance with the law.
The fact is that this is not simply a case of introducing a buy-back programme to rid the streets of illegal weapons like obtains in places like Australia, and the USA.  It therefore means that those criminally inclined in possession of illegal firearms will not be falling all over themselves in a rush to hand in what they might consider the tools of their nefarious trade. The state must adopt a vigorous approach to dealing with gun crimes reflected by severe jail time.  The sentences given to the two youths in the South Ruimveldt arms matter is an indication of how these matters should be dealt.  Crying about the porous borders and the ease of illegal arms entry is not the answer.

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