Free National Movement (FNM) Chairman Darron Cash said that even though recent numbers released by Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade show that crime is down 11 percent, the level of violence and murders in the country is still too high for a pat on the back.
Cash also said while the FNM celebrates the accomplishments of law enforcement officers, the party has questions about how crime statistics are being released and their accuracy.
“If one less person dies this year compared to last year that is reason for us to feel better, irrespective of the overall percentage change,” Cash said in a statement.
“I must, however, caution the commissioner and reiterate our concerns about the stats that have been released and our concerns about how these numbers are being classified and concerns about whether they are complete.
“I am not prepared to accuse the commissioner of ‘cooking’ the numbers, but I admit some confusion about what is meant by incidents of causing harm and how and where they are classified.
“Even as the numbers and percentages show improvement in some categories, the fact of the matter is that the levels of crime are still far too high and too high for us to be doing any unreasonable amount of self congratulations.
“There is still an enormous amount of work that must be done to bring the numbers down in a more dramatic fashion and in a way that the overall pervasive fears and insecurities will come down as well. This is particularly the case for armed robberies and housebreakings.”
Crime fell by 11 percent between January 1 and May 27, 2013 compared to the same period in 2012, according to statistics released by Greenslade on Monday.
There were 4,763 crimes reported during this period last year compared to 4,238 reported this year.
The police chief said violent crimes were down in all categories except attempted rape, armed robbery, which rose by five percent, and attempted robbery, which increased by 33 percent.
Crimes against the person increased by one percent and crimes against property decreased by 13 percent.
Murders were down by 13 percent; attempted murders were down by 60 percent and rapes decreased by 10 percent.
There were 49 murders recorded this year so far compared to 56 this time last year.
In his statement, Cash also encouraged Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson to work on laws that would prevent repeat violent offenders from a quick release after conviction and noted that police are frustrated with the judicial system.
Source: Taneka Thompson
The Nassau Guardian
