37 murders in first 8 days of 2022 ... but Chang keeps his jobs

Jamaica recorded 37 murders in the first eight days of 2022, data from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has revealed.

This is nine more than the corresponding 28 murders, which was committed in the first week on 2021. The country recorded 1,463 murders last year.

Despite the grim figures, Deputy Prime Minister Dr Horace Chang has kept his job as national security minister following a cabinet reshuffle that was announced yesterday.

Security consultant Robert Finzi-Smith told THE STAR last night that despite Chang's shortcomings, Prime Minister Andrew Holness would have struggled to find a better pick.

"Look at the government benches and find me a minister of national security. I dare you!" he said.

Finzi-Smith, however, said that Chang has failed to control crime in his St James North West constituency.

"I am going to call some names; Flanker, Salt Spring, Norwood, Canterbury, downtown Montego Bay; what do all of them have in common?" quizzed Finzi-Smith about tough sections in Chang's constituency.

"If yuh cyah tek care of your own constituency, how yuh ago tek care of the country?

In the meantime, Finzi-Smith opined that criminals have a limited view on life and this feeds their murderous attitude.

"Dem have an old time calypso weh say ' back to back, belly to belly, I don't give a damn, mi done dead already'. That's the mentality of these young men," he reasoned.

He argued that in order to reduce gun crimes such as murders and shootings, the Government will have to impose tough sentencing regimes on persons who are convicted of illegal possession of firearms.

"When you catch somebody with a gun and it is proven that it is an illegal weapon, they need to do the full extent of the time period and if doesn't seem long enough, they need to extend the time under the law. The average gunman now is 16, 17 years. So if you give him 30 years, him coming out at 47, a middle-aged man, who would have done enough time to introspect and reform. But if you give him 10 or 12 years, him coming out as a wiser bad man," Finzi-Smith said.