Dear Editor,

Murders are up — again! The police seem to catch very few. And when they do the courts seem to let most of them go free because of poorly constructed prosecution cases.

Our political leaders have been rendered dumbfounded and are unable to find a solution. Some pray for help, some want to meet with them and ask them to “stop the criminality, pretty please”.

The criminals are brazen and barefaced. Their families and communities that hide them are shameless.

Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson sounds tough as he reads from his teleprompter while his assistants look stoically ahead and can only say that investigations are “ongoing”.

The police force is stretched thin!

The saying “When seconds count, the police are only minutes away” is nowhere more applicaple than in Jamaica.

There are over 45,000 private, licensed firearm holders (LFHs) in Jamaica. They come from all walks of life and are all responsible, conscientious taxpayers. They are all motivated, committed, and trained to protect their own lives and the lives of their families.

But they generally often shy away from getting involved in any situation unless it concerns them personally. This is because of the harsh and often vindictive treatment meted out to other LFHs in the past by the police and media.

More than half of the LFHs are relatively young, fit, able-bodied individuals. That’s a pool of over 20,000 people who could be called upon to volunteer and help protect our communities.

It is time that a special LFH Deputising Programme be developed to make use of this critical pool of individuals.

Volunteers should be vetted according to physical fitness, firearms operations and safety skills, past training credentials, and, of course, character references. They would then receive special training in interpersonal skills, powers of arrest, reporting procedures, etc.

They should also be required to attend a series of refresher seminars to ensure they are kept up to date on the rules and regulations.

In return, these volunteers could be offered small incentives, such as reduced licensing fees for their firearms and a stipend to cover fuel and other travel costs.

I am also confident that the business community would support such a programme by offering special discounts or other incentives to LFHs enrolled in this programme.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness and others often speak about community policing. Let us start by enlisting the help of these trained and highly motivated citizens.

Proactive Jamaicans

proactivejamaicans@gmail.com