We don't want to sound alarmist, but our teenagers are drowning in blood. We are in utter shock over the latest, the barefaced and brazen killing of a teenager at the entrance of the Half-Way-Tree Transport Centre in St Andrew on Tuesday.

In full daylight, we are told in yesterday's Observer, khaki-clad students, along with other men in plain clothes, chased the teenager along Constant Spring Road before catching up with him at the centre. The men then repeatedly stabbed the teenager who, up to press time, was only identified as 'Raymond'.

He was taken to hospital where he died while undergoing treatment. The incident occurred minutes before five o'clock.

Imagine the transport centre at that time of the day, teeming with commuters and peak hour traffic. That must easily be the busiest part of the capital city at that hour.

Moreover, since the transport centre was officially opened in January, police officers from the Island Special Constabulary Force and security guards have been permanently posted inside the bus park, because of misbehaving students.

Yet not even that could not stop the murderers from carrying out their heinous act, in plain defiance of the authorities and the Kingston populace passing through the St Andrew capital.

We are well beyond seeing that incident in isolation. The country is overrun by killers and teenagers figure prominently in the bloodshedding, both as killers and the killed.

The trouble right now is that it seems that none of the measures being taken to stem the tide is working. We are not far from the point of no return, when drastic measures will be the only recourse left to us as a country.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding, who must be coming off a high from an excellent maiden budget presentation as leader of the country, will not get away for long with the excuse that he was waiting to go through the Herbert Thompson Report, before treating with crime in the budget presentation.

In Opposition, Mr Golding had much to say about what measures are needed to hold crime in check, including ways to fast track murder trials. While we don't join those who are dishonestly trying to place all our problems at the feet of the new administration, we are certainly anxious to see signs of decisive leadership against the crime problem.

Mr Golding need not wait on the Thompson Report. He has the Trevor MacMillan Report which was prepared while the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) was in Opposition. In fact, truth be told, there have been many reports over the years. By now, surely, we must have some kind of formula to tame this crime monster.

May we again suggest that the fight against crime is not for a single administration alone. The promised Vale Royal talks, such as they are, must go on and must tackle the issue of crime.

Furthermore, the new administration must be able to draw on the body of information, which by now must now be considerable, as developed by previous administrations. We cannot, at this stage, be looking to start over from scratch.

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