Political parties are elected to government to solve problems. For example, if there are no roads and people have difficulty getting from place to place, members of the electorate want men and women in power who are able to fix the problem and build roads.

The same is true with crime. There is a crime problem in New Providence. The residents of this island, and those in the wider Bahamas, want solutions. At election time, as they should have, the political parties put forward their ideas on the issue.

The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) won. It said it was ready on day one with the solutions to our problems, inclusive of our crime issues. The opposition has the responsibility to hold the government to account for its leadership of our country on all issues - especially issues of national importance such as public safety. The PLP while in office must try to fix the problem. The FNM, as the opposition, must critique and press the governing party to get the job done. Hence, crime is a political issue - as it should be.

If the PLP, after all the extraordinary promises it made in the 2012 general election campaign, returns to the Bahamian people five years later with murder, armed robbery and housebreaking counts similar to those during the last Free National Movement (FNM) administration, it would have failed to deliver what it promised. And if this issue is the most important one to voters, those voters should not vote for the PLP.

All Bahamians with common sense hope the PLP is successful with its crime plan. Our people are tired of being robbed, their homes and cars broken into and their friends and relatives shot and killed as if their lives have no meaning. However, if the PLP cannot fix this problem it would be reasonable for the Bahamian people to find another set of men and women they think able to implement successful policies.

This is the beauty of democracy. Every few years the people get a chance to expel failure and vote for hope. And if that hope fails, they get a chance to try again at the next vote.

The PLP has the mandate to get the job done. It has the support of the people to get the job done. The party said it had the solutions to our crime problem. We are well into the PLP's second year in office. We are still waiting and hoping for those solutions.

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