Dear Editor,
Stabroek News, Wednesday, April 20, 2016, reflects, perhaps only coincidentally, but most articulately, the profound trend of the dislocation of lives, limbs and obviously minds in our brutalised society.
Front page
– Missing Sophia woman found dead in trench.
– Wakenaam businessman dies after being shot, run over.
– Mother dies in accident while searching for son.
– Deputy Director of prisons proclaiming his effort to save prisoners from burning to death.
Page 2
– Suspect charged in murder of Mocha Mechanic.
Page 4
– Suspect held over year-old NA murder expected to be charged today.
– Second man charged over Crabwood Creek murder.
– Suspect in businessman’s abduction surrenders.
Page 10
– Handyman arrested over Good Hope farmers’ deaths.
Page 11
– Accused in Albouystown money changer’s murder freed
Page 18
– Goed Fortuin canecutter gets 13 years for killing wife.
– Three more years in jail for man who battered ‘wedding house’ guest to death.
– Uncle found not guilty of Haslington toddler’s murder.
By the end of this review one could not help wondering if there were not a case for a ‘murder supplement’ to the paper, which can be pulled out by those readers who do not wish to be haunted by the surrounding prevalence of death.
For added to the above is the bewildering resignation of Guyana Police to the thirty four ‘road deaths’ reported to have occurred in the first three months of 2016 – one every 2.67 days.
There is no indication of any attempt to forestall the unacceptable assault on lives, including the ongoing psychological trauma which close survivors must endure indefinitely.
No report of the investigations concluded as to causes such as, for example:
- i) Time of day/night
- ii) Poorly engineered roads
iii) Poor lighting
- iv) Weather conditions
- v) Indifferent to poor, and even the absence of appropriate traffic signage – in critical recognition of the continuing flood of new drivers gratuitously issued licences by the Guyana Revenue Authority, without any concern about their not been trained; preferably by the traffic Police, who themselves are hardly models anyhow.
- vi) The apparent non-functionality of air-bags does not appear to be a matter of any curiosity.
How can we be saved from such needlessly violent premature ends?
Yours faithfully,
E.B. John
