By Nicole Telford- Former Public Security Minister under the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Government, Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan said there has been regression in the security policies that were put in place under the APNU+AFC administration.
He noted an important issue dogging the People’s Progressive Party Civic Government (PPP/C) is the “non-implementation of studies from what the British Security Sector Report had brought forward.” He added that these studies were to ensure a more professional Guyana Police Force (GPF) and a better structure for the GPF information network, that could feed the police strategic unit with information to fight crime and to acquire information from within the criminal networks.
Ramjattan added that all the recommendations from the British were taken off the table by the PPP/C. He also pointed out the APNU+AFC government “was preparing for Police Maritime Unit, Aviation Unit and we had wanted all of that to be implemented at around the time when we said we would get the oil monies, because the British was saying that when we do these studies don’t put them on the shelf, and I had indicated that we would have the money at that time to do all the necessaries enhancing the infrastructure of the Police Force, making them far more comfortable giving them better salaries.”
Quite frankly, nothing as far as I am aware from those tremendous numbers of studies has been implemented, as a matter of fact the PPP/C has taken it off the table Ramjattan said.
The Leader of the AFC was at the time speaking with ‘In The Ring’ host Sherod Duncan who questioned the now Opposition Member of Parliament on his insight of the increase in crime and criminal activities across Guyana.
The Member of Parliament said the 2 a.m. curfew that was implemented under the APNU+AFC, which facilitated the closure of liquor shops and striptease facilities that were creating havoc in the forms of breaking up homes and causing domestic violence against women, had a positive impact on the reduction of crimes. He added that Saturday mornings brought major numbers of domestic violence complaints. “You know that Friday nights the fellas drink plenty and on Saturday mornings a major set of domestic violence occurred because obviously the lady would ask why yuh come home suh late, yuh done all the money and fights would break out.”
Ramjattan added that when the police enforced the closure of the rum shops “the rates of the domestic violence during weekends dropped dramatically, the statistics are in the Ministry of Public Security, also the accidents and the carnage on our roads.”
The politician, who is also a lawyer, said the PPP/C seems not to understand that minimising the hours and times of drinking would help to reduce crime and the domestic situation in Guyana as well as implementing policies.
Going further, he said what obtains now under the PPP is a free for all, “the businessmen who influence the politics and the policies of the PPP tell them ‘some of these club owners and so on who make millions on weekends, allow us to make our millions.’”
The AFC Leader said the PPP/C does not understand a culture then evolves where rum shops all over Guyana on the East Coast, West Coast Berbice and Corentyne open all hours of the day and patrons, without designated drivers, create havoc and carnage on the roadways and we lose not only the destruction of property but the destruction of lives.
