BASSETERRE St. Kitts, September 8th 2011 - Like the rest of the country I have been basking in the reflected glory of our home grown international sprinting legend and national hero Kim Collins and the rest of TEAM SKN including Antoine Adams, Delwayne Delaney, Brijish Lawrence, Jason Rogers and Coach Lonzo Wilkinson along with Eiston Williams and enjoying the positive attention that he and the team has been bringing to our nation over the past few days.
Unfortunately, while I would like to focus only on this scarce good news, the responsibility of being an active part of the political process behoves me to properly prioritize the pressing issues with which our tiny country is being confronted; the main one being violent crime. We are already suffering because Prime Minister Douglas has publicly, from the parliament, declared that he will not take on any responsibility for crime.
I was heartened when I listened to the message of Minister Condor in both his address to the nation and his address to the parliament in his capacity as the Minister of National Security. Like the Leader of the Opposition the Hon. Mark Brantley, I was pleased to hear him articulate the fundamental responsibility which lies with the government to tackle this issue and felt hopeful when he outlined his inclusive approach. The People’s Action Movement representatives were ready and eager to support Minister Condor by participating in what was supposed to be a bipartisan parliamentary committee on crime.
It was therefore with great dismay and disgust that I listened to the speech by Prime Minister Douglas on Wednesday night. In contemptuous disregard for the seriousness of our life and death struggle with violent crime the prime minister stripped Minister Condor of his ministerial portfolio and discarded his inclusive and bipartisan approach to dealing with the issue of crime. As if that was not enough, he also reduced the efficiency of the security apparatus by creating a superfluous Ministry of Homeland Security while simultaneously concentrating the enforcement arm of the government, police and army, under his own control.
In doing so Prime Minister Douglas has arrogantly dismissed the recommendations of the Hon. Leader of the Opposition, the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and several other important stakeholders in calling for the replacement of the permanent secretary of the Ministry of National Security. Instead, he has chosen to put his stamp of approval on the constant increase in violent, gangland homicides that has characterized the leadership of Mrs Browne.
The last time that the prime minister took over the Ministry of National Security in 2009, the nation broke the record for homicides in a calendar year yet he claimed a successful mandate. Now that rate has been equalled with four more months left in the year and it scares me to think what success for Prime Minister Douglas will look like this time. This is what politicizing crime looks like and the prime minister is the principal instigator. This is why our sons are being slaughtered
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