Over the past week, we were told of two changes the Government is hoping will help significantly in fighting the current crime wave.
Last weekend, during the Barbados Labour Party’s annual general conference, Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced a Cabinet reshuffle. In that shifting of ministers, Member of Parliament for The City Corey Lane was named Minister of State with responsibility for Crime Prevention. He will work directly with Attorney General Dale Marshall.
Lane’s appointment was among several changes. Dr The Most Honourable Jerome Walcott, the Senior Minister of Social Sectors and Environment, was named Minister of Health and Wellness, taking over the portfolio that had been held by Ian Gooding-Edghill who is now Minister of Tourism and International Transport.
Former Minister of Tourism and International Transport Senator Lisa Cummins is the new Minister of Energy and Business Development with responsibilities for International Business and Trade, taking over from Symmonds who was named as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.
When Lane was sworn in by President The Most Honourable Dame Sandra Mason at Government House on Wednesday, he told the media that he was ready for the job and had some plans in mind.
“In the short term, we have to bring down the heat in the areas. We will continue to do some of what we have been doing in the background but obviously with more resources and a better team, which is working directly with those at-risk persons and those persons determined to destabilise the country,” the junior minister said. “We have to go and deal with this head-on.”
Some pundits have questioned the wisdom in appointing the youth and social activist who entered Parliament for the first time after winning a seat in the January 2022 elections. It was a raging debate on the call-in programmes and a letter writer made this submission: “Government has just named an MP as some crime something – a man, to the best of my knowledge, not known to be professionally trained or with experience in criminal investigations, security, interdiction, intelligence, nothing, nada, zilch.”
On the day Lane took the oath of office, PM Mottley made another announcement related to her administration’s crime fight: Amendments to the Firearms Act are to go before Parliament on Friday.
On a previous occasion, she said amendments were coming to correct the section of the Firearms Act that struck down mandatory sentencing.
“That amendment, we believe, can follow that which is being done in the United Kingdom, in Turks and Caicos and in other countries where the sentence of imprisonment for possession of guns will be mandatory unless there are exceptional circumstances that the judge is satisfied that can be there,” the Prime Minister had said.
We remain hopeful that the gun law amendments and plans spearheaded by the Attorney General and Minister Lane, and the Commissioner of Police and his team at the Barbados Police Service assisted by consultant Darwin Dottin will bear fruit.
What is certain is that the Government is putting systems in place to arrest the crime situation. Of course, it goes without saying that more can always be done. But we must laud the efforts.
At the same time, beating crime requires more than policy, laws and new ministers. Each and every Barbadian has a role to play if we are to see a decrease in crime figures.
Parents must take greater responsibility for their charges and be vigilant. They must also act swiftly when they recognise odd or strange behaviour. Many know what their offspring are up to, yet they continue to turn a blind eye.
Friends and family who see loved ones travelling that crime road must be bold enough to call them out and set them on the correct path. We also implore teachers who often spend more time with the students than their parents do, to play their part in helping steer these children in the right direction.
The church and other social groups need to get into the communities with programmes that are engaging and relatable.
Corey Lane and the Attorney General are not alone in this fight. Each Barbadian is tasked with engaging in some form of crime prevention in their respective homes and communities.
