The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Deputy Chief Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Deputy Commissioner of Police Marvin Dames believes the government has been unable to control violent crime in the country because it is lacking a strategic plan that involves a multifaceted approach to the problem.

While the focus should be one that involves prevention and deterrence, enforcement and detection along with rehabilitation and integration, Mr Dames said so far the war on crime has been fought in “silos”.

“By focusing on these three components, we can significantly impact crime in our nation,” the Free National Movement’s Mount Moriah candidate said on Monday as a guest on radio talk show Darold Miller Live.

“Part of the problem is that we are trying to fight crime in silos. The solution to crime must involve a multifaceted and coordinated approach. Presently, the focus seems all to be on enforcement, which is understandable, but the issue with that is when the state of crime reaches this level, it is already too late. And so, that means we are reacting to an already existing problem which continues to spiral out of control.”

His comments came a day after FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis chastised the Christie administration for failing to “bring forth a real plan” to address crime.

According to The Tribune’s records, 12 people have been murdered in November, compared to ten in October, and six in September. Despite a spate of killings over the past few days, murders have trended down compared to 2015, which set a homicide record of 146 homicides.

Up to press time, the murder toll stood at 97 for the year, compared to the 136 recorded up to this point in 2015, according to The Tribune’s records.

Mr Dames said he believes that the relationship between the police force and communities such as Mount Moriah need strengthening. He added that community policing needs to become the norm to bridge the divide between law enforcement and the community so that prevention and deterrence is the order of the day.

“We have strayed from our community policing efforts. Any successful fight against crime must involve a sustained effort that brings the police and the community together in a genuine way. The police along with the support and cooperation of the community is vital to curbing violent crime at all levels, which also makes for a more safe and harmonious society,” he added.

Mr Dames said he believes a constituency-wide crime watch initiative focusing on surveillance, patrol and mutual partnerships should be set up, where volunteers within the community can help in the fight against crime.

He also briefly focused on his plans to build a camera surveillance centre, which will be comprised of CCTV cameras to provide security footage for the community.

Mr Dames said that if communities are self-sustainable, allowing people to be independent, then crime could be reduced substantially.