ZOSO not enough for Savanna-la-Mar – Mayor

WESTERN BUREAU:

BERTEL MOORE, mayor of Savanna-la-Mar in Westmoreland, says the zone of special operations (ZOSO) in the parish capital is not enough, as people are still being killed.

Since the start of this year, there have been three double murders among 16 killings recorded in the parish. “Despite the ZOSO, we are still having serious crime and violence in the parish of Westmoreland,” said Moore.

“I think, with ZOSO, there should be a way that you work out these things, so that you create some employment in the area; but all I can see happening is the police and the soldiers out there,” he said.

While welcoming the presence of the security forces, Moore said collaboration is needed to rescue the parish’s youth, in an effort to curb the high levels of crime and violence.

“It is time that we find something for the young people of the parish to do,” he said, while calling on the Government to invest more in order to create employment for the parish’s youth.

“I am tired of seeing the poor, young people on the street corners digging out their hand middle. We must engage them,” Moore said.

A zone of special operations was declared in the southern area of Savanna-la-Mar on January 13, as the Government responded to the upsurge in murders.

The ZOSO covers Russia, Dexter Street and Dalling Street, which form a significant part of the business community, and aims to, among other things, displace criminal gangs operating in that locale.