Cut violence out, Forde’s constituents told

Constituents of Christ Church West Central engaging in illegal activity have received a stern warning from their parliamentary representative in the aftermath of an unsettling spate of gun violence over the last few days.

Member of Parliament Adrian Forde was responding to reports of “three or four” gun-related incidents in three days in the areas of Gall Hill and Sargeant’s Village, which residents believe is gang-related.

No one has been seriously injured or killed in the recent activity, but some fear it is only a matter of time. Almost three weeks ago, a young man was shot whilst on his way to work, and on Wednesday night, an unnamed man was apprehended with an AK-47.

In an interview, Forde announced he would be taking a zero-tolerance approach on the issues as he repeated the appeal from his days in the Ministry of Youth to “put down the weapons and pick up the tools of empowerment”.

“Government will put the systems in place, and we will do everything in our power to make those opportunities available for our young people. But at the same time, there will be a zero-tolerance approach to guns and gun-related activities because you can’t control a bullet,” the Minister of the Environment and National Beautification told Barbados TODAY.

“So I am appealing to all those in my constituency to put down those guns and put them down fast because I am giving the law enforcement authorities my unequivocal and unreserved support as they try to tackle this gun violence. It is a no-tolerance approach from me. It is my constituency that I love dearly, but at the same time, as a good representative, I must say to these young men or women if they are wrong, they are wrong. I am not going to try to split hairs,” the MP added.

Forde refused to concede that the issues were either gang-related or retaliatory but indicated that some of the turmoil is apparently stemming from “petty” issues on the streets.

“Some of the things that I’m hearing that were responsible for the last couple episodes of gun violence are shocking for me. Issues relating to verbal exchanges for a lot of petty things, and I am saying that we have to live in a society where we respect persons’ opinion, respect law and respect order,” the MP insisted.

“As far as I pick up from being on the ground, there are issues probably going back further where I suspect persons would have been involved in activities. To say it is retaliatory, I would have to be involved in the cases in an investigative way, and I don’t have that knowledge now.

“There’s a saying that the devil finds work for idle hands, and I am appealing to those young men to look for alternative ways to resolve issues,” Forde added.

Forde has also promised to have a discussion with “the powers that be” about the reinstatement of a police outpost in the hotspot areas.

The alternative opportunities being afforded include his ministry’s Clean and Green programme and the ash clean up that has created jobs for hundreds of citizens.

“I also want to say that the constituency, the good epicentre of Christ Church, is known for things other than being on the front page of the newspaper. The Gall Hill Football Team . . . is known for its community outreach and sporting activities. Briar Hall, Maxwell Club, it is known for facing in a panoramic way the area of Oistins and the sea and that type of livelihood and community spirit,” he concluded. (kareemsmith@barbadostoday.bb)