Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan has criticised former president Bharrat Jagdeo’s recent comments on crime, while warning that they could give ominous support to criminal elements.
“That opposition leader is a very garrulous fellow these days. And he simply does not want the police to carry the fight on the criminals. He is opening his big mouth with all the deceptions and is giving a renewed confidence to the criminals. It is an extremely bad thing, when the statistics are proving indeed that the crime has reduced as against last year,” Ramjattan told Stabroek News in an interview.
Jagdeo, whose tenure as president has been widely accepted as seeing the worst manifestation of crime in the country’s history, last week declared that crime in the country has never been as bad as it is now.
“It has never been this bad. People are now robbing hospitals (and) they went into two hotels. When you start going into hotels, robbing hotels, then that sends a strong signal on tourism. If criminals can go into a hotel and rob it soon they might go into funeral parlours, who knows,” he added.
Ramjattan said that there was not much that a minister or the Commissioner of Police could do when, notwithstanding the statistics, the citizenry doesn’t believe that crime is reduced. “I do not know what else can be done,” he asserted.
“Notwithstanding the reduction, the crime rates are still high and there are a number of reasons for that. The police force has limited resources, there are greedy people out there… the unemployment rates are very high at the youth level, and indeed the CDB [Caribbean Development Bank] has indicated that there is a 40% youth unemployment rate, which is always going to see a high crime rate,” he said.
Guns from Brazil
Ramjattan said another cause of worry for Guyana’s law enforcement is the growing number of firearms being smuggled into the country through Guyana’s porous borders, especially from Brazil.
Gun crimes were the most pressing facing the country, recently retired Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force Mark Phillips told a security forum, organised by the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), last Friday.
Ramjattan echoed Phillips’ statements and pointed out that most of the guns found being used in criminal activities here were traced to manufacturers in neighbouring Brazil.
“I must point out too what was said by Mr Mark Phillips and that a lot of guns are coming through Brazil. We have done a lot a lot of work on blocking them coming through from the North American side, but we have noticed the increase in Tauruses, that are Brazilian made, that are coming through the borders,” he stated.
He said that government will ask for international help in tackling the issue. “We have to plead for some international help, as we have asked of the Americans, that they must be concerned… when people get these guns they use these guns,” he noted.
Granting of bail
Ramjattan also criticised the granting of bail to persons held for gun crimes, while saying many ended up committing crimes when they are released.
“I had made public that after the amnesty when people are found with guns that they must not get bail, but a number of magistrates are still giving them bail and we understand that some of these guys come out and go and do de wuk again. We need a collaborative effort, that is, from the judiciary, prosecution, policemen and so forth, so that we could stamp this thing out. Then people will not feel they can do the crime with impunity because they get out on bail and all of that,” Ramjattan said.
“We have done the amnesty, as it relates to unlicensed firearms, and lots of people brought in their firearms and we said that the people that did not bring them in will feel the brunt of the law. But still a lot of people are getting off and getting bail although they are found with the guns in their cars and pants and homes and that is not helping the situation,” he added.
Last Saturday, acting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine criticised the judiciary for putting persons who should be on remand back on the streets. “Four defendants who were charged with unlawful possession of arms and ammunition are out on bail. In three cases they were granted bail by the High Court and in one case a magistrate. This is something that should be known so that right-thinking people can be concerned,” he said during a press conference. He added that in one of the four cases, the accused was charged and granted bail but while on bail was arrested and charged with simple larceny. He was granted $50,000 bail. “So he is out on bail for a serious crime and he is granted $50,000 bail for another serious crime the following month. Now he is a prime suspect. This is the troubling part of it… he is a prime suspect in the robbery/murder of a Brazilian in the interior. He is in custody and a firearm was used,” he said.
