Dear Editor,

Most Guyanese living in Guyana have either experienced a violent crime or know someone who has. Existing in this fear-filled reality is bad enough, but to be intellectually insulted by the Minister of Home Affairs is just too much.

Minister Rohee rejected the notion of a security crisis in Guyana saying that it exists only in the minds of politicians. Minister Rohee’s own police force reported that robberies involving guns increased by 16% over the number of reports in 2012. Robbery under arms increased by 7%.

Murders increased by 3%. That is a murder every sixty hours. According to the US State Department, Guyana is rated as “crime critical.” This is no surprise as our murder rate is three times higher than in the United States.

With our 5% increase in serious crimes like rape and kidnapping; our increased reports of trafficking in persons, drug seizures and traffic fatalities, how can Minister Rohee say that the crisis is in people’s minds?

The fact is, Minister Rohee has failed to contain an explosion of criminal activity including organised gang crimes. His much touted plan for 2013 has done nothing to make Guyanese safer. His newest idea, the SWAT team, will not stop murders, rapes and robberies. And we will spend another year in fear under Minister Rohee’s impotent, incompetent leadership.

When Guyana’s Home Affairs Minister must compare our country to war ravaged territories like Iraq, Syria and South Sudan, in order to look good, we know that we are in deep trouble.

When Minister Rohee implies that Guyanese are rich because most robberies involve smart-phones, we know that it is time for us to put our collective foot down, and demand better leadership. How long will we tolerate being terrorised in our homes, robbed on the street and brutalised by criminals and police alike?

And then, on top of it all, we are insulted by the Minister who claims the crisis is in our heads and we can afford smart-phones?

Yours faithfully,
Mark DaCosta