Practical Christianity Ministries President, Pastor W P Jeffrey is calling on government to establish a formal ex-offender rehabilitation programme in light of the crime situation in Guyana.
Jeffrey, who is also the founder of the organisation he heads, said even with all the resources being spent to outfit the police and expand the prison and the holding cells, the prospects for any abatement in criminal activities, do not look promising.
Recently, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud reported that the majority of crimes are being committed by young people and about a third are repeat offenders.
He also noted that 80 per cent of the persons charged with robbery are below 35; 93.6 per cent of repeat offenders for street crimes are below 35; 74.4 per cent of persons charged with breaking offences are below 35; and 66.3 per cent of persons charged with rape are below 35 years.
“What was not in the crime chief’s report is the statistical fact that more than half of these offenders – due to stigmatisation, lack of after care and other post release services – are likely to perpetuate their criminality for many more years, even as younger criminals join them.
“What the chief did not say is that most of the street crimes (as opposed to white collar crimes) are being committed by young Black males, which is obvious, in part, by the disproportionate number of Black males in prison.”
Report
The Guyana Prison Service report, 2010-2015, titled, Towards Renewal and Reconstruction notes that the majority of the inmates, 68 per cent, are within the age group 16-35, confirming that more youths are involved in crime.
Moreover, more youths are coming into the prisons for a number of offenses, including those of violence in one form or another. These youths are invariably, functionally illiterate, and in many instances, school drop-outs from predominantly single parent families,” the report says.
The influx of criminal activities is also putting a strain on the penal system.
The report indicated that overcrowding began to emerge in the 1970s, and at January 2010, prisoners’ population across the five locations – Georgetown, Mazaruni, New Amsterdam, Lusignan and Timehri – was in excess of its optimum capacity by 33 per cent.
According to the strategic plan, one of the weaknesses of the Guyana Prison Service is its “inability to effectively classify and segregate criminals within the prison system because of overcrowding and staffing issues”.
Unhelpful situation
This means these young inmates – 16 to 25 – are being exposed to other forms of crimes, from the more seasoned inmates. They then return to society and unleash these new found skills on the community.
According to Pastor Jeffrey, the Practical Christianity Ministries can run the programme.
“We have 10 acres of land with running water from a spring; we have the architectural drawings for the rehabilitation facility we intend to build; the men will have somewhere to go to when they are released.”
