St Catherine chamber of commerce supports SOEs
Published:Friday | December 30, 2022 | 1:01 PM
President of the St Catherine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dennis Robotham, says he supports the reimposition of states of public emergency.
The 14-day security measure for eight parishes including St Catherine was announced on Wednesday by Prime Minister Andrew Holness.
Similar SOEs were imposed by the government on December 6.
"Once the implementation is properly executed and does not adversely affect commerce, I fully support the measures," Robotham said.
"In addition to the SOE there is a need for proper intelligence gathering, which would no doubt assist to deal with the crime situation."
His view came against the revelation of an increase in criminal activities despite several anti-crime initiatives in the St Catherine North police division.
The consensus is that the business community is hoping that the new SOE will see a reduction in extortion and other anti-social behaviour.
There has been a significant increase in murders compared to the corresponding period of 2021.
The division recorded 144 homicides compared to 97 last year this time.
Meanwhile, there were reported reductions in robberies and break-ins.
- Rasbert Turner
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