On April 27, 2017 I received a copy of a 214-page document entitled ‘Five-Pillar Strategy for Crime Prevention and Citizen Security’. I began reading through this document to see if I could find answers to pressing questions I had. I got some help, but regrettably not as much as I needed, and thus will use this space to comment on a few elements of the document as well as highlight some concerns I had prior to reading same.

The document, dated April 7, is described as a “handbook” and consists of 11 chapters, references, appendices, and a four-page preface authored by the Minister of National Security Robert “Bobby” Montague. With a handbook of such length, and laid out in the way it is, my first concern was, for whom is this written?The answer to this seems to lie on page 3: “This is a call to arms for all law-abiding Jamaicans, whether here in Jamaica or living abroad.” I therefore concluded that this handbook is intended for the general public. Therein was my first concern. The likelihood of this document being read and understood by the general public is something to which the ministry must give serious consideration. But calling it a handbook is somewhat misleading, as a handbook is a user’s guide; the general public will not be implementing these strategies.In terms of the strict meaning of the word ‘strategy’, the document does say quite a bit about how the ministry intends to focus its energies and resources. But therein is another rub.For a strategy to be effective it must clearly define the problem it is seeking to solve, or the ideal future it is seeking to create. In this regard the minister appears to have his eyes in the right direction when he states in the preface that: “The five-pillar strategy is the cornerstone to achieving the ministry’s long-term goal of reducing and preventing crime and violence,” and goes on to state that: “The Government of Jamaica is mindful of the current reality regarding safety and security in the society, and its responsibility for securing Jamaica.”Having seen indications that the ministry is looking in the right direction I continued to search eagerly for the ministry’s characterisation of the root cause of the problem. I felt I was getting warm, given the heading of Chapter 1 — ‘The imperative of a new approach’. I believe, as I have written before and explore further, that the root cause of crime in Jamaica is unattached youth. Thus I kept searching. The only mention of unattached youth in this chapter was a short paragraph of about 60 words on page 25. The succeeding paragraph, a bit longer, spoke about gangs; but, like the first, provided no serious analysis of the issue of attached youth as the root cause.Thus my conclusion is that this strategy document, though voluminous and rich in data on the manifestations of the problem of crime, has not adequately described and analysed the root causes of crime and violence, and thus it is almost inevitable that the five strategies will not be laser-focused.

Addressing the root causeIn an article entitled ‘Fighting crime strategically’, published by the

Jamaica Observer on March 26, 2017, I estimated that there were some 172,000 unattached youth in Jamaica. Opposition spokesperson on education and Member of Parliament for an inner-city constituency, Ronald Thwaites estimates that there are about 150,000 unattached youth. Thwaites made reference to this number when he addressed the issue of the recent youth engagement programme announced by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, which targets 1,000 youth per year to be trained by the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), and suggested that given the large cohort of youth, the 1,000 per year under the programme is a drop in the bucket. The newly minted chief of defence staff of the JDF, Major General Rocky Meade, has confirmed the JDF’s view that tackling the youth problem is the number one priority for dealing with crime and violence in Jamaica. Thus, any effective national security strategy must be focused heavily on unattached youth and must begin by defining the scope of the problem.Beyond the references made above to unattached youth, the strategy mentions some activities targeting youth, for example:• Expand cadets from 2,500 to 3,000• Use of social media to communicate with youth• New “national anti-gang strategy” for 17/18 to 18/19• Equip at-risk youth with skills in graphic designAs can be seen, apart from the first item — which proposes a modest increase in the number of cadets — each of the other activities is either devoid of specifics or has no targets.In the said March 26 article, referenced above, I cited policing data which show that five parishes have consistently accounted for upwards of 73 per cent of total murders and shootings in Jamaica over the last decade; that gangs were responsible for 70 per cent of murders committed in Jamaica; and further that 60 per cent of the perpetrators of murder were between 15 to 24 years and were unemployed. Police data also showed that there are some 266 gangs operating in Jamaica.Murders in 2016 were up 13 per cent over 2015, and so far in 2017 the year-to-date comparison shows a 21 per cent increase over 2016. But in western Jamaica the increase in 2017 over 2016 is almost 50 per cent. Unsurprisingly the main perpetrators remain youth under 24 years old. With a potential pool of gang recruits ranging between 150,000 and 172,000, the prospects for a continued high crime rate are frightening as each of these gangs can conceivably recruit as many new members as they wish. 

Cars, cars, carsGiven perspectives on the need to invest more in snatching unattached youth from the snare of gangs, and being mindful that what policies get implemented is a matter of dollars and cents, I was taken to minister’s (so far) signature policy, namely the provision of used cars for the police. This policy is mentioned on page 29 of the 214-page document under the heading ‘Strengthening the capacity of the security forces’. The policy is described thus: “Strengthening the mobility of the security forces by providing the required resources — including an increase of the JCF [Jamaica Constabulary Force] fleet by 200 vehicles. There will be significantly improved fleet management…” (sic).What is not clear, but may be assumed, is whether the policy calls for 200 vehicles each year, and if so for how many years. But beyond those details the deeper issue is the claim that used vehicles will improve fleet management. That presumption also has alongside it the minister’s promise that by purchasing used vehicles he would be able to provide four vehicles for every new one he would have provided.In a March 22, 2016

Observer report, entitled ‘Montague to purchase used cars for police’, the minister is quoted as saying: “I know that people will criticise me… I have already asked the permanent secretary that the money that will be given for motor vehicles in the next budget, we are going to buy some used cars because you can get four used cars for [the price of] one new car,” [emphasis supplied].In his fiery rebuttal to claims by Opposition spokesperson on national security Peter Bunting that the used cars purchased by the ministry cost $2.3 million each, the minister insisted that the used cars cost $1.3 million — a million less than claimed by Bunting. I have, however, seen information stating that the first set purchased were 2014 models, which did cost $2.3 million, and the second set were 2012 models, which cost $1.3 million. Thus, if the plan were four vehicles for one, even at a cost of $1.3 million, the plan is not holding. But to the extent that there is conflicting information about the cost of the units, the public has a right to get the facts, not the fake news — as the minister is wont to remind.Beyond the proven fact that four for one is not on, and given that the age of the vehicles in the two for one, it means giving the police vehicles which will require major maintenance within 12 months of the date of acquisition, the spectre is that maintenance resources will be bled from the already scarce resources leading to an inability to properly treat with the big problem of unattached youth. 

Dr Canute Thompson is a management consultant and lecturer in educational policy, planning, and leadership at the School of Education, The University of the West Indies. He is also co-founder of the Caribbean Leadership Re-Imagination Initiative and author of three books on leadership. Send comments to the Observer or

canutethompson1@gmail.com.