ST ANN, Jamaica – The St Ann Chamber of Commerce has expressed concern about the increase in murders in comparison to the corresponding period last year.

Head of the St Ann police, Senior Superintendent Dwight Powell, reported recently that the parish recorded 33 murders since the start of the year.

This, he noted, is 13 more than in 2022.

Speaking to OBSERVER ONLINE, president of the Chamber, Dr Ransford Davidson, said crime and violence continue to impact citizens of the parish.

Davidson, who is also a Justice of the Peace, said with one of his colleagues murdered in the parish recently, the concern has heightened.

“We are very concerned, as any other citizen. In fact, as a Justice of the Peace, we also had one of our members…who was recently murdered, so there is a general concern with respect to an increase in the murder rates in the parish. But of course, we continue to work closely with the security forces. It’s not just from the St Ann Chamber of Commerce perspective but from the Justice of the Peace Association…to see how we can minimise some of these incidents. But it is still obvious that we will need a large general consensus across Jamaica to deal with this scourge of violence that’s impacting us,” he said, noting that the collaboration with the Chamber, the police and the Justice of the Peace Association must be improved.

He said while States of Public Emergency (SOEs) have been successful in the parish, other measures must be exercised.

Among these measures, he explained, is the implementation and enforcement of legislation.

“If the numbers and the data would suggest that they [SOEs] were effective, because during these areas they were actually reports of a reduction in the crime rate. I think we also need supporting elements. There are key legislation, for example, the newly enacted security measures that were announced some time ago that need to be implemented. These are where that gives the police force the powers to deal with criminality outside of the SOEs,” he said.

Davidson noted that the resources granted to the security forces in St Ann must also be improved.

He expressed confidence that once these measures are implemented, the security forces will be better able to put a lid on major crimes in the parish.

“I am confident in the security forces. I am confident that once we put in place the necessary legislation from a government perspective and ensure that those legislations are quickly implemented that we can see a reduction in the crime rate. I am also confident that if we further engage civil society, if we further engage the churches across the island, for example in terms of social intervention programmes, and also strengthening the Ministry of Justice and our justice system to ensure that matters of criminality are quickly taken care of at the courts, no doubt that we can see greater results across the island,” he shared.