MANCHESTER, Jamaica— Manchester Central Member of Parliament (MP) Rhoda Moy Crawford has condemned the views of councillors in the parish who questioned the rationale behind the implementation of a curfew in communities that have experienced an upsurge in violence and murders.

Crawford, in a news release on Friday, was adamant that the Manchester police had her full support, following their decision to impose a curfew earlier this week in the communities of Clarke’s Town, Redberry, Trinity, May Day, New Hall and surrounding areas.

READ: Curfew imposed in Manchester communities

“As Member of Parliament, I stand in support of the lawful and professional efforts of the police here in Manchester to combat the scourge of criminality across the parish and provide reassurances to our law-abiding citizens. I implore all citizens to support the police as they are acting based on the intelligence that is available to them as well as their expertise as crime fighters,” Crawford said.

She was responding to Manchester councillors who believe the crime-fighting measure is stifling economic activities in the parish. Mayor of Mandeville Donovan Mitchell had also questioned the validity of the curfew at a time when the police reported an 80 per cent clear-up rate of murders.

“People are killing people in broad daylight; if we have an 80 per cent clear-up rate why are we still having all of these curfews? People are asking me the questions and I don’t know what to tell them, because right now we are going up into the Yuletide Season, people want to sell some more,” he said during Thursday’s sitting of the Manchester Municipal Corporation’s monthly meeting.

READ: Manchester councillors question rationale for curfews

Crawford on Friday concurred that while curfews have caused some inconvenience to citizens, she is urging them to be understanding as the police seek to make the communities safer.

“I readily appreciate that curfews and other enhanced security measures create some amount of inconvenience and disruption to citizens who would otherwise be unrestricted in going about their lawful business. With the parish’s murder tally numbering in excess of 40 for the year so far, I am appealing to the citizens of Central Manchester, particularly business and night-time entertainment stakeholders to exhibit resilience and understanding, as the police seek to make the space safer for all of us,” the MP said.

She condemned the utterances made by the councillors, stating that they could undermine the police’s crime fighting efforts which could embolden criminals.

Crawford added that following her advocacy, National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang will be touring sections of Mandeville next Thursday, and will have a town hall meeting with the business community, residents and other stakeholders in Manchester Central and the wider parish.