Dear Editor,
Like so many Guyanese, I remain interested in finding out what has really happened in the Sheema Mangar case. It has been more than four years since the brutal slaying of a promising young professional, and to date the law enforcement agency seems to be clueless as to who might be responsible for the death of young Mangar. Since this tragic incident occurred in the busy evening rush hour in Georgetown, many people believed that the case would have been quickly solved. However, even with heavy traffic and a stream of pedestrians in the vicinity of the crime scene the police seem unable to get the cooperation of any eyewitness. Is it that the people and the police are so far apart that the police were unable to solicit the assistance of eyewitnesses? If this is in fact the situation, then there needs to be a re-examination of the relationship between the police and the citizenry, as clearly there appear to be some ingrained problems. What, then, is the Minister of Home Affairs doing to bridge this gap and help to improve the relationship between the police and the community? I must state that I have been following this case since that fateful day of September 10, 2010 and the image of what appeared to have happened remains ever vivid in my mind. I have written several letters in the media, to seek status updates on Sheema’s death, and every time I write I feel that the investigation is moving ten paces backward. I also sense an apparent lack of commitment, effort and urgency by the authorities to vigorously pursue the investigation.
Sheema’s parents deserve to have closure on their child’s death. The public has been advised that samples were sent to Barbados for testing, however, according to the police those samples came back negative. So the perpetrator continues to elude the police. Sadly, this case exposes a grave deficiency in local law enforcement.
In May, of this year, Crime Chief Leslie James was quoted in the media as saying, “like every murder investigation, sometimes the trail goes cold for some time, but that doesn’t mean it is closed.” This comment certainly does not give comfort to Sheema’s parents or the many other families who continue to wait for cold cases to become hot again. There remain too many cold cases in Guyana, and the ministerial head of the Guyana Police Force seems clueless about to how to lead his organization out of this debacle. There appears to be no kind of strategic insight, leadership or plan as to how the police can combat this distressing situation. It is unclear whether Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee has the capacity and wherewithal to seriously lead the police force out of this situation. Recently, Mr Rohee has been spending his time politicking and making political overtures. I therefore wonder whether he has merged his PPP General Secretary role with that of Minister of Home Affairs. Clearly, the people are confused and families are concerned that he might have abandoned his responsibility to ensure that the criminals who murdered their loved ones are found by the police and prosecuted. The families of the victims of these heinous crimes need to know that the Minister is working to ensure that the police bring these criminals who take the lives of their loved ones to justice. It is not enough to say that you are committed to solving these crimes when your action/inaction indicates otherwise. I hope for that for the parents’ sake, the killer/s of Sheema Mangar will be found and prosecuted. I also hope that those who have information regarding her death will cooperate with the police so that the parents are able to get the closure they so need. I pray for closure for this family, and also for many other families still waiting for justice for their loved ones.
Yours faithfully,
Lurlene Nestor
