POLICE chief Francis Forbes has assigned 60 cops to full-time duty at the Transport Authority as part of the government's new assault on the problem of public order in Jamaica.

Yesterday's announcement that the officers from the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF) have been working with the Transport Authority for nearly a week, came as the information minister, Burchell Whiteman, told journalists that the Cabinet has signed off on sweeping measures to promote public order.

"The Cabinet accepts that a comprehensive and coordinated approach to public order will promote greater accountability, enhance the integrated use of government resources and will improve the degree of collaboration between state agencies and civil society in maintaining law and order," Whiteman said after yesterday's weekly meeting of ministers.
The government outlined its public order agenda in the governor general's Throne Speech delivered in April and since then various ministers have been outlining several different elements of the projects while the Cabinet's public order committee sought to draw the broad policy strands together.

The Transport Authority disclosed yesterday that since August 4 its inspectors have been working with the police team, led by Senior Superintendent Elan Powell, in a move to bring more discipline to the transport sector.
Up to Sunday they had arrested 15 persons who had outstanding warrants for traffic violations, while 328 persons were issued with tickets for traffic violations.

Additionally, 43 buses and taxis that were operating illegally were seized, another 17 defective vehicles removed from the roads and 41 persons served with summonses to appear in court.
Joan Fletcher, the managing director of the Transport Authority, said that the closer collaboration between her agency and the police was necessary because of the increased breaches of the traffic laws and to keep criminals out of the public passenger transport system.

Transport Authority inspectors monitor bus routes for violations by licenced operators and, with the police, remove illegal buses. But they have no powers in relation to private vehicles in breach of the traffic laws.
"(We are) determined to rid the sector of illegal operators, including persons operating without licences, persons operating in contravention of the terms of their licences and those operating outside their assigned routes," Fletcher said.

Kingston's public bus service was a notoriously chaotic free-for-all with hundreds of independent operators, gathered loosely under umbrella organisations, ignoring rules and hustling for passengers.
The system improved substantially with the launch in the late 1990s of the government's Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC), but illegal operators, called robots, have been creeping back onto routes and the discipline of JUTC's buses has slackened. There is also a growing problem of route taxis whose drivers often disobey road codes.

The P J Patterson administration has vowed not only to deal with the problems in the public transport sector, but to crack down on squatting, illegal quarrying, violence in schools and general disorder on the streets.
Whiteman told reporters yesterday that over the next six months the government would unveil targeted public education campaigns, aimed at building awareness around public order issues, and to inform the public about the "zero tolerance" approach being taken in relation to specific breaches.

The first of the campaigns will focus on violence in schools.
Some of the programme will have to be under-pinned with legislative changes, Whiteman said. Specific agencies will be assigned specific duties and will have to report on their successes.
Additionally, a Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) officer has been assigned to work with all the agencies to coordinate the efforts and to ensure effective implementation of programmes.
The Cabinet will receive periodic reports, Whiteman said.

Tarrus Riley shoots video for Start Anew

Naomi Campbell to open retrospective photo show

A pleasant evening of music and much more