Alagie Barrow urges new paradigm shift to tackle crime rates

 

Team Outpost

Alagie Saidy-Barrow, former TRRC Investigator has called on the government of President Adama Barrow to take a new paradigm shift towards tackling crime rates in the country. 

In his regular contribution on Coffee Time show on Tuesday, he said keeping data on crime will help reduce the high rate of crimes in the country. 

“Keeping statistic on crime is critical in internal security. Not that does this guides authorities or resource allocation, but it also helps with the formulation of crime policies. 

Importantly data on  crime rates helps with the perception of crime trends,” he said 

Statistic on crime and development he said,  can be very political. 

“We have reduce our security matters into partisan politics. Instead of a holistic debate in crime and its cause and consequences, it becomes an emotionally charged and minds of back of forth without any substance”. 

He continued: “given the lack of centralised crime data base. The level of crime in The Gambia becomes a matter of perspectives and not facts. 

The safety and security of the people deserves better that that,” 

He recounted the number of unaccounted crimes committed during the former government of Yahya Jammeh. 

“I remember how so many of my colleagues were shot at the number of an unaccounted when we worked on an enforced Disappearances during the dark days of the APRC government. 

We were unable to get any accurate data on the number of Disappearances but we at least manage  to lay hands on the files of over one hundred missing persons in The Gambia. 

When people think that crime is rampant it creates an atmosphere of fear. And the population leaves in fear of each other. And that in itself creates insecurity,” he said. 

Hr added: “our idea of security is limited to thieves not being able to break into our houses, whilst our government central theme is how to maintain their government positions and privileges. 

A place is not secure when food is scarce, a person cannot be secure knowing that when they sick they cannot afford good health care. A person cannot be secure when they have no income. 

We should take a pause and see who are secure ones among us. They are the very people who claim to be working for us. They are secure but the majority of us are not” he concluded.