Dear Editor,
Do they have our attention now?
As New Providence ratifies itself as an embattled city, a war zone of sorts, its citizens continue to live in fear and accumulate a reservoir of hate and revenge. Several school students were stabbed at Government High School (GHS) and this has added to the escalating violence that seems to have been sparked from an incident that occurred about two months ago.
There appears to be a gang war going on in New Providence. Everywhere I go I hear snippets of what is going on and it seems as if every Bahamian is in danger. I heard a voice note on social media recently and this seems to have captured some pledge of allegiance to a particular gang. I am sure there must be other gang pledges.
I am no criminal expert, but I am almost certain that the police are not telling the general public all that they know in relation to this escalating crime wave. The public, in my view, has a right to know what is going on in their country and we shouldn't be just hearing snippets in passing conversation.
Has a gang task force been formed to deal with this gang problem? Who are the alleged leaders of these gangs who may be promoting these heinous acts? What is the plan to infiltrate these gangs and bring some normalcy back to The Bahamas, specifically New Providence? These are some of the questions that society wants to know.
Our children are posting videos on social media of students fighting each other on a regular basis. Many times instead of calling the authorities for help, they actually stay there and watch the fight and laugh and giggle like it's a game that they play on their Xbox or their smartphone. Maybe our children have too much uncontrolled access to these smart gadgets.
We are loosing the battle, in my view, to save this generation. And something needs to be done.
Parenting has become a lost art and our children today have been left to fend for themselves. No slick talking speech will cut it. No music concert will do. We need to implement effective social programs that can assist parents in raising their children. We need to find a solution together. The government, church, civil groups and the general public must be able to work in unison.
How many more stabbings, robberies, shootings and murders must there be before the proverbial light goes off in our head? This is an election year and God knows I don't want to hear any more political speeches promising relief. Our nation is under attack and the attackers are neither strangers nor foes. The attackers are me and you. I trust that the events that occurred at GHS along with our almost daily shootings have finally gotten our attention.
- Dehavilland Moss
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