GG says leaders must set example by working together to solve Ja's crime problem

As Jamaica's leaders gathered on Thursday morning for the 43rd annual National Leadership Prayer Breakfast, Governor General Sir Patrick Allen reiterated the need for them to collectively work to rid the nation of crime and violence.

Jamaica recorded 1,498 murders in 2022. This was 24 more homicides compared to the previous year. 

Up to Monday, Jamaica had already recorded 32 murders since the start of 2023. 

"For too long we have struggled with turmoil and instability as a result of crime and violence. Amidst the pleas for peace are also the cries for justice. Not only for the perpetrators, but also for the victims," Allen said at the event held at Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston. 

"A house divided against itself, cannot stand. There is so much in Jamaica which requires us to work together, to work in one accord from the level of leadership. We as leaders gathered here, must first demonstrate this by setting the example for the people to follow. We must always consider the impact of divisiveness when we as leaders make decisions. It is not only about us, [but] more so, those decisions about the people that we lead," he said.

Allen continued by charging the leaders of the nation to have "principles of peace, justice and forgiveness" which, he said "are very relevant in today's world and those principles must be evident in us to be transmitted to the people we lead".    

"We hear the cry daily for peace. We hear the cry for justice, which, sometimes, may be slow in coming for the lack of capacity and resources, but we are committed to justice," he said  

He said some of the ways leaders can uplift the country, is by strengthening and optimising that nation's justice system to better serve people, encouraging reconciliation and rehabilitation outside of the official court system, restorative justice and continuing to engage communities in sports and other healthy interactions that will promote the values of respect, discipline and camaraderie.

Allen also expressed that he is proud of the leadership team of the National Leadership Prayer Breakfast and said the initiative remains relevant 43 years later. 

His address was followed by a scripture reading from Micah 6:3-8 by Andrew Holness, Prime Minister of Jamaica, and then Luke 4:16-21 by Mark Golding, Leader of the Opposition. 

-Ainsworth Morris

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