Are demands for the scalps of the Minister of national security and the commissioner of police due to the rising murder rate warranted?
I doubt it. Even though many believe that a change in leadership is the right response to the crisis, I am not certain that it will produce the solution we all want. A careful review of the past crime management and prevention strategies and tactics and why they have failed is also necessary.
Gordon Robinson’s column “Shouldn’t we do unto others?” last Wednesday strengthens my opinion.
The main tools that Mr Robinson uses in his search for the truth are “relentless and unapologetic … analysis beyond (the) superficial; assessment based on clear thinking”. This is also a model for problem solving.
Looking behind the raw data of the number of murders should be part of any thoughtful analysis of crime. University of the West Indies’ Annie Paul provided a good example.
On the same page on which Mr Robinson’s column appeared, Ms Paul disclosed some important facts that the out-with-Montaque-Quallo crowd overlooks. The source: this newspaper’s archives.
The “recruitment and retaining of policemen and women has been a persistent problem long before Independence”. In 2016, for example, Ms Paul writes the staff size was 20.3 per cent below what was ideal for the police force. Low salaries were the cause.
It would have interesting to have compared how much the average police person earned versus his counterpart in the Jamaica Defence Force and the rate of staff turnover in that institution with the Jamaica Constabulary Force. The image, efficiency, and effectiveness of the former has consistently surpassed the latter in the minds of most persons.
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