For decades, both political parties have been accusing each other of failure to solve the crime problem. It was the subject of some contentious exchanges in the Senate recently and again at the recent People’s National Party (PNP) annual conference. When one reflects on the history of the problem one is forced to wonder whether the comments we hear are a result of political mischief, ignorance, or both.

The truth is, neither party — or anyone else, for that matter — can solve this problem in the short term. And it is equally unfair to throw this problem at the police; it is not a police problem. The crime problem we are experiencing is the result of decades of social neglect. Many of the causative ills have been neglected for so long that they have become absorbed into our culture and are now treated as acceptable. The communities in which these criminals establish their base protect them because they benefit from the spoils. And members of the security forces, reeling from poor working conditions and costly personal decisions, are easy targets for bribery.

Any genuine attempt to deal with this problem requires short-term containment and a long-term plan which will address the root causes of the ills.

In the short term, may I suggest:

1. Police must supply us with clear credible information on suspects.

2. Every commercial enterprise must install quality closed-circuit television systems in and around their buildings. These must be properly maintained and made available to the police on request.

3. Communities, too, should have these cameras installed at every exit. The contribution from each household is just a few cents. All communities should be encouraged to establish a neighbourhood watch, the primary objective would be to deal with fire and security matters.

4. Establish a secure DNA database to be able to check for matches. In other jurisdictions, hundreds of crimes are solved by making comparisons with data from previous crime scenes.

5. Acquire more crime-fighting technologies that are effective elsewhere.

Recently, I attended two funerals. Both were humble, Christian grandfathers. One attended high school; one did not get that far. What left me overwhelmed was the fact that their progeny were all responsible, highly regarded people doing well in their respective professions. They spoke of their love, respect, and affection for these men and detailed how he played with them, rolled on the floor, simple little things that mattered and formed treasured memories.

What these men, their children and grandchildren did not know was that in-between these little games he was offering clear structures and limits. The playful activities were infused with powerful mixes of discipline and affection — exactly what the world-famous therapists prescribe. In theses families there was no money to speak of, no mansions. They did it by spending quality time with their families. Young girls depend on their fathers for security and emotional support. They learn from him what a good relationship with a man is like. The boys model themselves after their fathers’ character. No one in the family constellations of these two departed men was hunting down innocent citizens to rape and murder them; they were too busy improving the lives of others.

Crime has its genesis in the indiscriminate excretion of children. I refuse to call it child-bearing, and make no apologies. I speak of the women who breed with no money, no marketable skills, no secure place of abode. The breeder is long gone, searching for another gullible victim. And grandmothers are no longer available. They are also busy with similar pursuits. Soon hunger, anger and depression jolt these women into the real world. And the only reachable target of their venom is the child. The ensuing child abuse is how the monsters who rob us of our loved ones, our future, our property, and our freedom are created.

But that is not all. Each year billions of dollars are picked from our pockets to fund hundreds of thousands of them on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH). We can’t get proper service at hospitals because of the number of their victims. This is after the numbers in schools and other facilities are swelled by them.

Robert Kenneth Ressler was an FBI agent and an author. He played a significant role in the psychological profiling of violent offenders in the 1970s and is often credited with coining the term “serial killer”. At the end of a research project he conducted he had this to say, “…100 per cent (of serial killers) had been abused as children, either with violence, neglect or humiliation.” Studies from different corners of the world have demonstrated, repeatedly, that childhood neglect and abuse results in permanent changes to the developing human brain. A team comprising researchers from McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School and Northeastern University used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology to identify measured changes in brain structure among young adults who had experienced childhood neglect and abuse. There were clear differences in nine brain regions between those who had suffered childhood trauma and those who had not.

The fight against crime must start with prospective parents understanding the full consequences of their actions. It won’t be popular, but Government must ignore the political consequences and make child abuse a major crime because it is responsible for all the major crimes.

PNP President Dr Peter Phillips said his Government would persuade parents to refrain from child abuse. I wish him well. In research carried out by me two years ago, the overwhelming majority of mothers insisted that only regular, brutal beatings can guarantee the outcomes I discussed with them. But the unwitting strategy of these two deceased grandfathers is the only sure prescription I know to the crime problem.

Glenn Tucker is an educator and a sociologist. Send comments to the Observer or glenntucker2011@gmail.com.