Custos: SOE long overdue in Westmoreland

WESTERN BUREAU:

Hoping that the intervention will help to curtail the spate of murders, Westmoreland’s custos, the Reverend Hartley Perrin, says that state of emergency (SOE) was long overdue in the western parish as too many innocent lives have been lost.

“It’s long overdue. Some drastic steps needed to have been taken a long time ago as citizens of Westmoreland have been crying out,” Perrin told The Gleaner yesterday. “We have lost so many innocent lives over the years, and persons have been cowering in fear and, obviously, the police find themselves – though they have been trying to do good – they have not been so successful.”

He expressed hope that increased resources in the parish would help the security forces get a better grip on the crime situation.

“[St James], which had a state of emergency for quite a number of months, saw a major reduction in the number of murders, albeit resources were drawn from Westmoreland and elsewhere to boost up St James. If those resources are available, we will be able to put Westmoreland under some control,” Perrin said.

He also called on the security forces to be vigilant and not allow criminals to slip through security checkpoints and relocate to other parts of the island until the operation has ended.

“We are hoping that what transpired with us, where it would appear that people left St James to come to Westmoreland [under the last SOE], we would hope that they don’t leave Westmoreland to go elsewhere,” said Perrin.

Moses Chybar, the interim president of the Westmorland Chamber of Commerce, also welcomed the SOE.

“The truth is, anything in life that is worth having will require some form of sacrifices, and as it is now, businesses are going to be closing early,” said Chybar. “This is a temporary measure. I don’t think it is going to be a forever thing, and if we get the desired results, I think it is a sacrifice that we are willing to make.”

Albert Ferguson