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Who will slay the beast?
Henley Morgan
Thursday, November 15, 2007
MURDER in Jamaica is developing a personality and an attitude reminiscent of Goliath in the Holy Scriptures. Having plunged the country into the valley of the shadow of death, murder stalks the land daily, taunting and beckoning: "Choose ye a man and let him come down to (confront) me." On October 31, 2007, the beast claimed another brave soul who took up the challenge, one Lucius Thomas who passed away quietly into retirement.
We shall build a monument to these dear departed souls. Inscribed there upon shall be their names, the years each served, the murder rate at the start and at the end of each tenure, and most telling, the size of the increase or decrease. The information to be used for the exercise appears in the accompanying table .
The information reveals how formidable a foe we are up against and the ineffectiveness of those leading the charge. Under AG London, the murder count increased by 87 or 133.9 per cent of the starting number. In the runner-up spot is the longest-serving of the bunch, Francis Forbes, who saw the gap increase by 119.3 per cent under his watch. Most floundered in the range of 15 per cent to 76 per cent above their starting figure. DO Bowes and L Thomas, the two shortest-serving, managed to reduce the murder count by 55 per cent and 18 per cent respectively. In the context of a rising tide of murder, theirs must be considered fallow success.
In short order another commissioner of police will be appointed. Given the ineffectiveness of those who occupied the office over the last 40 years and the refusal of each at the end of his tenure to accept accountability for a murder rate spiralling out of control, there are a few questions that must be posed to those now vying for the post.
. Given the present level of resources, could you quantify the results we can expect from you in the war against crime generally and murder in particular?
. If after the first two years of your tenure the number of murders is higher than it was at the start, do you agree that you should be fired?
. Critique the performance of your predecessors who failed to produce a satisfactory result, saying what each did wrong and what you would do differently.
. Where does the buck stop in the fight against crime and violence?
Twinned with the chief crime-fighters since the early 1960s, has been a string of ministers of national security: Eli Matalon, Carl Rattray, Dudley Thompson, Winston Spaulding, Oswald Harding, Errol Anderson, KD Knight, Peter Phillips and now Derrick Smith. If Smith cares about his track record going the way of that of his predecessors he will stop being hands-off in the matter of choosing the next commissioner of police. That choice is the single most important factor in determining whether the goal of reducing the number of murders by 40 per cent in five years will be achieved.
In February 1994, William Bratton was appointed police commissioner of New York City. Crime had got so badly out of control that the press referred to the Big Apple as the Rotten Apple. Yet in less than two years, and without an increase in his budget, Bratton turned New York from the deadliest into the safest large city in the nation. Felony crime fell 39 per cent; theft, 35 per cent; murders, 50 per cent and public confidence in the New York Police Department jumped from 37 per cent to 73 per cent.
Jamaica needs someone, whether from inside or outside the ranks of the JCF, to step forward and like David of the Bible lead a decisive battle against the Goliath of murder in our midst. Mr Minister, with the choice of commissioner of police you seal your fate and the fate of the entire Jamaica.
hmorgan@cwjamaica.com
Henley Morgan
Thursday, November 15, 2007
MURDER in Jamaica is developing a personality and an attitude reminiscent of Goliath in the Holy Scriptures. Having plunged the country into the valley of the shadow of death, murder stalks the land daily, taunting and beckoning: "Choose ye a man and let him come down to (confront) me." On October 31, 2007, the beast claimed another brave soul who took up the challenge, one Lucius Thomas who passed away quietly into retirement.
We shall build a monument to these dear departed souls. Inscribed there upon shall be their names, the years each served, the murder rate at the start and at the end of each tenure, and most telling, the size of the increase or decrease. The information to be used for the exercise appears in the accompanying table .
The information reveals how formidable a foe we are up against and the ineffectiveness of those leading the charge. Under AG London, the murder count increased by 87 or 133.9 per cent of the starting number. In the runner-up spot is the longest-serving of the bunch, Francis Forbes, who saw the gap increase by 119.3 per cent under his watch. Most floundered in the range of 15 per cent to 76 per cent above their starting figure. DO Bowes and L Thomas, the two shortest-serving, managed to reduce the murder count by 55 per cent and 18 per cent respectively. In the context of a rising tide of murder, theirs must be considered fallow success.
In short order another commissioner of police will be appointed. Given the ineffectiveness of those who occupied the office over the last 40 years and the refusal of each at the end of his tenure to accept accountability for a murder rate spiralling out of control, there are a few questions that must be posed to those now vying for the post.
. Given the present level of resources, could you quantify the results we can expect from you in the war against crime generally and murder in particular?
. If after the first two years of your tenure the number of murders is higher than it was at the start, do you agree that you should be fired?
. Critique the performance of your predecessors who failed to produce a satisfactory result, saying what each did wrong and what you would do differently.
. Where does the buck stop in the fight against crime and violence?
Twinned with the chief crime-fighters since the early 1960s, has been a string of ministers of national security: Eli Matalon, Carl Rattray, Dudley Thompson, Winston Spaulding, Oswald Harding, Errol Anderson, KD Knight, Peter Phillips and now Derrick Smith. If Smith cares about his track record going the way of that of his predecessors he will stop being hands-off in the matter of choosing the next commissioner of police. That choice is the single most important factor in determining whether the goal of reducing the number of murders by 40 per cent in five years will be achieved.
In February 1994, William Bratton was appointed police commissioner of New York City. Crime had got so badly out of control that the press referred to the Big Apple as the Rotten Apple. Yet in less than two years, and without an increase in his budget, Bratton turned New York from the deadliest into the safest large city in the nation. Felony crime fell 39 per cent; theft, 35 per cent; murders, 50 per cent and public confidence in the New York Police Department jumped from 37 per cent to 73 per cent.
Jamaica needs someone, whether from inside or outside the ranks of the JCF, to step forward and like David of the Bible lead a decisive battle against the Goliath of murder in our midst. Mr Minister, with the choice of commissioner of police you seal your fate and the fate of the entire Jamaica.
hmorgan@cwjamaica.com
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