By Kurt Campbell
[www.inewsguyana.com] – Opposition Leader David Granger has expressed dissatisfaction with the manner in which the ongoing ‘Impact Albouytown’ Project was initiated and is being rolled out.
Granger told a media conference on Friday morning (April 25) that the project is off to a bad start; adding that it is based on misapprehensions of the crime situation in Guyana.
According to the Guyana Police Force, Albouystown was selected based on analysis, which revealed that the community is the most challenging at present.
However, according to Granger the project is being implemented without the support of many residents and called for the Force to review the project as he rejected that major sources of crime originates from the Community.
He recalled a recent meeting with acting Police Commissioner Seelall Persaud where he noted that while the intent of the programme is complimentary; he cautioned that executing it without the support of, or consultation with the communities, could have negative consequences and warned against the stigmatizing of certain communities.
The Opposition Leader reasoned that the sources of crime are mainly from money laundering, financing of terrorism and the gun/drug trade as he questioned whether these things occur in Albouystown.
“The residents of that community have been hurt over the years mainly by the actions of the police and in order not to see a repeat the police must listen to the people instead of a few businessmen.”
Only yesterday, Persaud admitted that the project has been rejected by a few residents but posited that those who reject the project are mainly persons who benefit from the proceeds of crime.
Since the launch of the project on April, 11 several businesses have made contributions to ensure the realization of the project.
The Guyana Police Force in collaboration with Heavenly Light Full Gospel Fellowship and Masjid An-Najm Social Centre of Albouystown launched ‘Impact Albouystown’ project, the first of its kind, which through law enforcement and social interventions, is intended to make the neighbourhood safe.
At the launch, a number of computers and garbage bins were donated to the community.
Through this project, youths of the Albouystown community will have the opportunity to empower themselves through training in areas such as, denial of criminal role model, computer training, job creation, workforce development, clean and healthy environment, vocational skills, drug demand reduction, violence avoidance, literacy training, electrical installation and refrigeration and counseling.
As a result of the project, the Police have arrested seven men for narcotics related offences, which included 188 grammes of marijuana.
According to a statement from the Guyana Police Force, an unlicensed .45 pistol was also recovered during an attempted robbery on a business place at Albouys Street, which was thwarted by the quick response of the police.
