STEVE McGregor, who recently resigned as head of security at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, on Thursday argued that much of the safety concerns currently facing the institution stems from the fact that it is an open campus where students don’t like to wear identification (IDs).

“I left a host of plans and strategies to deal with the access control for the place. I was hearing some of the things and I think a lot of the things I heard are overstated,” McGregor, a retired senior superintendent of police, told the Jamaica Observer.

McGregor spoke to the Observer following a flood of mainstream media reports and social media postings of students claiming that there have been robberies — some of them by armed men — and other crimes, including rape, committed on the campus.

“I think what I am hearing is over-exaggerated. Nobody got raped up there during the time. I was there from August last year to January 12 this year. Two [armed robbery incidents] I am hearing that took place up there, it wasn’t at gunpoint. Somebody held on to their waist and robbed the students. It is an open campus, in truth, with five access points and a lot of broken down fences and the lighting is poor,” he said.

“I structured a real policing plan that the institution started to work on. Myself and the the property management team were working on fixing the fences, cutting down bushes and shrubbery and improving lighting. It is a work-in-progress. I was really surprised when I heard how the students were talking. The statistics are there, and if you engage the security team up there now they can show you the stats,” McGregor said.

On Wednesday, The UWI issued a press release stating that it has boosted security on the campus. The university also rejected claims that students were recently held at gunpoint and robbed while on campus.

On Thursday, McGregor said it was his understanding that there was some kind of politics at play on the campus, giving rise to the claims.

He said that, in his estimation, the main problem on the campus is the issue of motor vehicle theft, but the measures he had put in place had led to a reduction.

“We had put a lid on that and brought that down. Over 2,000 motor vehicles go in and out of that campus on a daily basis, so you can see why. The access control to deal with the movement of people in and out is one of the challenges. We were having challenges in getting the students to wear their IDs. The only way to differentiate a student from a potential robber is the ID. Students wear any clothes on campus. There is no dress code, so the things that the security teams can use to identify them is ID, but they normally don’t wear the ID that often,” he said.

“When I was there, I even engaged a security company headed by Mark Shields to get some new video identification cameras that can get the licence plates of motor vehicles and facial recognition, because the cameras that are there are outdated. I know that there are a lot of things being done, and even the [students] guild I heard giving some talk on it. I had a real relationship with them. We crafted a guide as to how the security team would interact with them. There is a protocol that should come out that should change the whole in and out through the gate and so on,” he explained.

“There are a lot of things to be rolled out to deal with the whole access control at the university, but I am certain that what I heard on the television, it is not that bad. It is exaggerated,” McGregor insisted.

“I hope the managers that are there now will speak out and let people know what they are doing, although there is a lot more that can be done. Even the security company that works there, I engaged training for them to increase their whole efficiency level. It is a strategic plan that will work out,” he told the Observer.

Arguing that the freedom to drive onto and off the campus is not tenable, McGregor said, “You want to have proper control, but you have to do it in a gradual way. I think if you engage the security management team they can show you that there are a lot of plans to make it better.”

In its press release on Wednesday, The UWI said numerous measures would be implemented, including increased security presence, enhanced quick response teams, strengthened perimeter security, improved lighting, and increased mobile patrols.

“We are actively increasing the patrols of campus police officers and contracted security teams from KingAlarm to enhance surveillance, response times, and overall crime-prevention efforts. Entry points along campus perimeter have been assessed with better equipped personnel being stationed and patrol units circulating more frequently to provide re-enforcement. Immediate assessments and upgrades to lighting across walkways, parking lots and less-trafficked areas are already under way. Our security office has contacted the Jamaica Constabulary Force, who has assured increased police presence from both Mona and Matilda’s Corner [police] stations. Patrols along Garden Boulevard and Mona will provide additional enforcement and deterrence against criminal activities,” the university said.

A report carried this week by Television Jamaica showed students expressing concerns about safety.

“There is a terrible, terrible, terrible security situation at UWI, Mona,” one student said as she claimed there were too many robberies at gunpoint taking place on campus.

Another female student shared that she feels unsafe, adding that fellow students are equally afraid.

Another student argued that The UWI is supposed to be a university that stands for its students who have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for an education.

“I don’t think any student deserves to feel so scared going to and coming from classes or coming off the road. It adds an extra expense to us because, if we have to Uber from place to place on campus just to feel safe, and we already can’t afford our tuition, I feel that that’s a lot,” the student said.