FREEPORT, St James — President of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) Oral Heaven has indicated that while the parish had seen a reduction in crime since the start of the year, the business community is yearning for the implementation of a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system for St James that will assist the security forces in fighting the crime monster.

Heaven also suggested that there are legal logistics, among other factors, that are delaying the JamaicaEye system from becoming a reality.

Heaven told a press conference at the chamber’s office in Freeport, St James, on Thursday afternoon that the chamber is currently “working with the powers that be to get it up and running”.

“The business community wants the eyes. They want this CCTV because they want to be able to have a tool to help with crime fighting. It [crime] is a concern to all of us who operate a business in St James — the Indian, the Chinese, everybody, because, as I said — blatant killing. If a person can be so brazen as to kill [in] broad daylight, it is a concern to the people,” stated Heaven.

When asked by the Jamaica Observer if the chamber will be assisting the Government in financing the initiative, Heaven assured that funding is already in place.

“Funding is not a problem to get the CCTV, As a matter of fact, they have identified funds. It is just that there are some legal aspects that they have to work out to get the cameras up and running,” stated Heaven, who emphasised, “Believe me, we are working behind the scenes to get that up and running because we know the importance of it.”

Chamber Director Paulette Neil said the business community stands ready to have cameras on their premises connected to the JamaicaEye network.

“Several of our members remain ready to participate with the police. They are ready to have their video system set up…whatever specifics are required to have it set up, they are ready, anxious and waiting,” stated Neil.

However, Heaven explained some of the issues that must be taken into consideration.

“And there is compatibility too. This system has to be compatible with the system that the police are working with to ensure that they can feed into that. Another thing that the police said is that the footage cannot be used if the person who provided the footage is not willing to testify or go to court, and that is a problem,” stated Heaven.

For now, Heaven said more resources, such as vehicles and men and women on the ground, can assist with crime fighting.

“Get the police out there on the streets. Get the motor vehicle. Get the bike. The bike will help because the bike allows the police to move swiftly through the crowd and through the traffic,” urged Heaven who pointed to present challenges with resources.

“The reality is there are problems with resources and we have had the commissioner [Major General Antony Anderson] here in Montego Bay twice and we have spoken to the commissioner as it relates to crime and the resources that are available for Montego Bay. The resources that they give Hanover, they can’t give St James because it is a much bigger territory,” argued Heaven.

Heaven said the chamber is doing all it can to assist the police, as he pointed to the provision of beds and the outfitting of a barracks for the hosting of new police recruits for the parish three months ago.

On the other hand, Heaven has given thumbs up to Operation Restore Paradise, an initiative launched by the St James police last year which is aimed at resetting public order in Montego Bay.

“It is at a stage where we need to continue to monitor it and ensure that it works. Why I say it is working is because Westmoreland wants to copy [and] Ocho Rios wants to copy. If it wasn’t working, we would not have different territories that wanted to put it in place to help them clear the streets and help them fight crime. So it is just that it is ongoing, but we expect to get more out of it,” stated Heaven.