Dear Editor,

Notwithstanding financial and legislative intervention from the Government, the barbarous culture of crime in Jamaica is like a plague for which a cure is not forthcoming or known. And the prospects of significantly suppressing such debilitating situation seems unlikely to happen post-haste because aspects of the Government’s recently mooted crime-fighting policy don’t find favour with the parliamentary Opposition and other stakeholders.

Another issue that preoccupies some Jamaicans is the matter of ditching the monarchy. And for them, it is an expedient issue. But for most of the population, there are far more urgent issues in the country to address.

Undoubtedly, crime reduction is an imperative. But guided by history, a substantive diminution does not seem imminent. And regarding the monarchy, it is still not known how soon their reign as head of State will come to an end.

What can happen immediately, though, is fixing of the appalling roads. Far too many, if not most, of our roads are in disrepair for too long. Probably the Government is at ease because commuters are not demonstrating, including mounting roadblocks.

The bumpy road surfaces interspersed with numerous potholes are unbearable and undeserving. In my opinion, the Government’s ignoring of these shambolic roads for so long is an affront to the citizens. It can be interpreted as the State showing little or no compassion for the plight of its people.

A primary example is a section of the thoroughfare in central Jamaica that vehicles going east to west, and vice versa, must traverse. It is the roadway starting at the Glenmuir Bridge, which spans the Rio Minho River to Whitney Turn at the Clarendon and Manchester border. That corridor has been screaming for proper rehabilitation for so long, especially the portion from Scotts Pass to Whitney Turn, which is an eyesore and a passage incurring exceedingly lengthy delays.

Inevitably, productivity and appointment schedules are adversely affected. Hence, I urge the Government to move apace to remedy these roads that are in atrocious conditions. They include those in Manchester, in all four constituencies, including the Winston Jones Highway that goes between the central and north-western constituencies. The many years of patching of selected portions merely adds to the bumpiness, so scarification and proper overhauling should be employed to the entire area of each road being repaired.

Peter A P Gordon

Mandeville, Jamaica

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