Dear Editor,

Young Jamaica, the youth arm of the governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), strongly denounces the decision of the parliamentary caucus of the People’s National Party (PNP) to reject the extension of states of public emergency (SOE) in seven parishes.

The PNP senators followed their Lower House colleagues to deny the Jamaican people the safety and security provided by the most effective crime-fighting tool deployed by the Government in history. The PNP’s action demonstrates that the party is tone deaf to the pleas and demands of civil society, private sector businesses, pundits, the security forces, and most importantly, the people of Jamaica.

Recent statistics have shown that, upon the SOE declaration during the week of November 15, Jamaica experienced the most sustained reduction in murders in those areas since 2015. Furthermore, past utilisation of the emergency powers also resulted in similar decreases while the measures were in effect. The Mark Golding-led PNP’s arguments that the measures are ineffective fly in the face of these facts.

The parliamentary voting record of Opposition members on the issue of security and public order begs the question: Is Mark Golding and the PNP willing to put the best interest of all Jamaicans over sheer politicking instead of opposing for opposing sake?

It must be mentioned that successive PNP administrations over their lacklustre years of governance had consistently defunded the security forces and hampered their crime-fighting ability, which has led to the proliferation of gangs, guns, violence, and a 190 per cent increase in the murder rate between 1990 and 2007.

Young Jamaica calls on all well-thinking Jamaicans to join us in urging the parliamentary caucus of the PNP to co-operate with the security forces and the governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) in the extension of future states of emergency, and challenges the PNP to come to the Jamaican people with a more effective crime-fighting plan instead of opposing the Government’s endeavours.

Young Jamaica