[dropcap]A[/dropcap]t a sitting of parliament last month, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet addressed the number of homicides committed last year: “Of the sixty killings, forty of them were gang- and drug-related. When we see now the implication as to where those drugs and arms are coming from, Venezuela is very high on the list.”
He said that many of the migrating Venezuelans were drugs and arms trafficking and cautioned: “Saint Lucia does not have the resources to deal with that situation. Therefore we are working with the Venezuelan government and regional forces to ensure we can secure Saint Lucia’s boundaries.”
Efforts to secure the borders are now underway, with the proposed formation of a Border Control Agency. This was how Mr. Chastanet addressed the subject to reporters on Monday: “We’re looking at integrating a couple of our agencies. One is immigration, two is customs, and the others are the quarantine and the marine police. The new border control would actually be those four entities merging into one.”
He revealed: “Software used at the border has been dysfunctional for years, so there is a need to upgrade the system. A company came in, and I’m hoping we can move very quickly to get that system in place.” He added: “Police officers will no longer be performing the function of immigration. The police officers will now go back to their substantive posts on the beat. We’re very excited about that because we would like to see more policemen on the road.”
Will the formation of the new agency result in individuals losing their jobs? The prime minister assured concerned parties, “We don’t see anybody being sent home. My government, since we’ve been in office, has not asked anybody to resign. So any solution that requires people to be sent home is not something that my government would consider. Commonsense would tell you that if you’re adding more responsibilities . . . well, I don’t know how you would end up hiring less people.”
A transitional committee with representatives of all parties was put in place last week to “work with all the different agencies and informing them as to what’s taking place and how it’s going to be affecting anybody, if anything at all,” the prime minister said.
As for related new legislation, the prime minister advised: “We’re hoping that will be enacted by the end of the year. We’ve indicated that we want to see implementation by next year. I certainly want it to be implemented in the old airport prior to moving into the new airport, because those processes will be very important in determining the final design of the new airport facility.”
