Pastors ready to help battle Westmoreland’s crime scourge

WESTERN BUREAU:

Despite the low turnout of religious leaders for last Friday’s consultation on the crime situation in Westmoreland, Custos Rev Hartley Perrin still thinks the local clergy will play its role in forging greater partnerships to blunt the scourge.

“It has been successful. However, I regret that there were not more ministers from across the parish because I recognise that some communities were not represented here,” said Perrin. “I didn’t hear anybody saying, for example, they were from Grange Hill, and that’s one of the areas that are causing quite a bit of challenge for the police, and for the citizens.”

Perrin, who is also the pastor of the St Peter’s Anglican Church, said the consultation, which involved fellow pastors, the business community, civic society, the police commissioner, and the leadership of the Westmoreland Police Division, looked at the issues as well as approaches towards solving the violence and murders being committed in the parish.

“It is a start, perhaps the news will go about that when we have these meetings, it’s important that the ministers come out to voice their opinion, tell of the challenges they have, and make recommendations,” the custos said.

Perrin said he was particularly pleased that Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson made an unannounced appearance, as he was able to detail the police’s plan to bring in additional resources to battle the lawlessness, which has spawned over 100 murders in the parish since the start of the year.

Clover Madelin-Robinson, pastor of the Highway Assembly of God Church in Little London, said the stakeholders’ meeting provided critical information that the church community can use to become more visible in the respective communities in terms of providing counselling, as well as spiritual and moral guidance.

“I am thrilled to know that the police have plans in place to restore law and order. Many of the things they talked about I was not aware of them. I am now motivated to go out and speak to my community about the positive things that the police are doing, and how they as citizens can play their part,” Madelin-Robinson said.

Bishop Oneil Russell, head of the Ark of the Covenant Holy Trinity Church on Cooke Street in Savanna-la-Mar, said the time has come for members of the clergy and their congregation to start working assiduously to stem the spate of murders in the parish.

“Now that we have gathered and talked, let’s act. Action must be the order of the day. It cannot be the same as usual because crime is too high in this parish and every one of us needs to infiltrate our community,” Russell urged.

“I need to see pastors coming into the unplanned communities and reaching out to our young people, it cannot be about us being comfortable within the walls of our churches,” he added.