Prime Minister Lauds St. Thomas for Low Crime Rate

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has lauded the parish of St. Thomas for maintaining a low crime rate since the beginning of the year.

“Compared to other parishes, this parish is doing very well…and I want you to take pride in that and keep that crime rate down,” he told residents of the parish.

The Prime Minister was speaking at a ‘Hope for Jamaica’ Town Hall meeting, held on July 13, at the Goodyear Oval in Morant Bay, St. Thomas. The meeting was organised by the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation.

Mr. Holness pointed out that crime can be kept under control if citizens work together to ensure that the parish remains safe.

“Don’t take them (criminals) into your house and do not take them on as new boyfriend and new girlfriend…run them. Make sure that your parish remains safe and secure, because that is going to be one of the greatest attractions for investors to come here,” the Prime Minister said.

Mr. Holness outlined initiatives that will be undertaken to move the parish forward, including plans to transform the parish into a tourist attraction.

“Already, we have two serious prospects who want to develop a tourism resort in St. Thomas,” he said.

The Prime Minister also cited plans to repair the roads leading to St. Thomas, as this will be integral in the development of the tourism industry in the parish.

“The first thing that we have to do in driving the growth and development of your parish is to focus on the cliché term – the road to development starts with a road,” he said.

The meeting was the second in a series to be held across Jamaica. The next parish to be visited by the Prime Minister will be Trelawny in August.