Dear Editor,
Too many of our young people in Guyana are sliding down a hill into immorality and a life of crime. As I watch the news and read the papers I note with a great deal of interest that too many of our young people are involved in some very serious gun crimes. Most of these young people are from broken homes and single-parent backgrounds, and some have no fixed place of abode. A survey at our prisons showed that more than 60% of our prisoners are illiterate or functionally illiterate and over 75% are very young offenders some of whom have been involved in heinous crimes.
These young people are trying to ‘get rich quick’ by robbing innocent citizens, and the drug trade is growing like a tree among the young and the old. Even old ladies in their 70s and 80s are pushing drugs. These destroy the youths in our communities and motivate them to commit crimes to get money to fuel their drug cravings. We have bicycle and motor-bike snatchers in the city of Georgetown; pickpockets, choke and rob and gun-carrying bandits all over Guyana as well.
The robbery of the cambio dealer in Berbice where over 20 million was taken, gives us much to think about. And a former police officer was involved, according to the news. They were carrying AK 47s and this gives rise to the question as to where and how they acquired these weapons. If they are not caught they will create a wild rampage of more crimes in this country. Most police officers don’t carry a gun and those at the stations who are always too busy to come when a crime is committed are unable to deal with these hard core criminals who carry assault rifles. I am yet to hear the voice of the Minister of Public Security, our President and all our foreign missions, particularly the US, Canadians and British, since they happen to be the brainchild of this APNU+AFC government on how to tackle the crime situation.
It is my firm opinion that these big criminals have many masterminds or ‘intellectual authors’ planning these crimes, and more is yet to come if this AK 47 gang is not dealt with expeditiously.
If the cambio dealer who was robbed had had a big gun he would have been able to defend himself, but now the rich citizens have no guns but the criminals do, and these hard core criminals have rights in court, because they know they will be bailed out easily to go and rob again. Getting rich quick has been a way of life for many young people, both male and female, who has embraced a life of crime. The crime is here to stay because there are too many lenient laws. Criminals who kill innocent citizens must be given the death sentence. If the government implemented tougher laws then crime would be eradicated.
Crime is also a moral problem; it stems from poor family values. What we have here in Guyana is too much ‘live home’ and ‘shack up’ lifestyles, where so many women have children for different child fathers and these kids grow up illiterate, so they become the criminals of tomorrow. If our young people had parental guidance and a good home and education they would not turn to drugs and crime. Even when thieves are released from prison they go out and commit a bigger crime because they have no place of abode. Many prisoners told me they prefer to stay in prison. We need to build schools and churches in our prison compounds to educate these prisoners; even get teachers to teach them CXC so they can have a better future. We need a prison reform programme and better living conditions for prisoners.
Drugs and crime have now become a global phenomenon, and we must not be fooled into thinking that in America there is no crime. Some of the criminals here are deportees from America, and they have learnt about these crimes in the USA. We must act now as a nation to get rid of crime or more of our businesspeople will leave Guyana; many have left already.
We must work hard to get what we want not by pushing drugs; we must have more programmes for our youths because today’s youths will be tomorrow’s leaders.
It’s in God’s plan for people to work hard and I call on the young and old to work for their daily bread and not live a life of crime to ‘get rich quick.’
Yours faithfully,
Rev Gideon Cecil
