Editorial: Robust Measures Against Increasing Armed Robbery

Peace is generally understood as a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict and the freedom from fear of violence. Internationally, peace is not only the absence of war or violent conflict, but also the presence of positive and respectful socio-economic and cultural relationships. Even though socio-economic and cultural relationships in Liberia from the perspective of peace, from time in memorial, continue to experience herculean challenges, the absence of war for the past decade under the auspices of the United Nations Mission in Liberia or UNMIL may be considered peacetime.
True to the foregoing, Liberians may no longer be “running helter-skelter” or in disarray as a result of battles between or among competing belligerent forces, but the fear of crimes in street corners and their respective communities.  Armed robbery has now become the most infamous, heinous and uncontrollable crime perpetrated by drug-driven heartless and undesirable and unpatriotic Liberians and foreign nationals.

Every day, especially in the sub-barbs of Monrovia, including Barnersville and the general Paynesville area, peaceful citizens continue to be terrorized, tortured, wounded or even killed in the process of taking away their hard-earned belongings acquired over the years by these drug-driven armed gangs.  While the Liberia National police may be doing well to battle this heinous crime permeating our various communities either during midnight or early morning hours depending on the locations, timeliness for intervention continues to be the most serious challenge. Many a time, the horror is perpetrated long before the arrival of the police despite the numerous calls for help.

With the Holy (Christmas)  Season almost in sight, armed robbery is again on the high increase to the detriment of peaceful citizens and residents of Monrovia and its environs, probably, to test the resolve of Director Chris Massaquoi and his Liberia national police.  Even though Director Massaquoi may complain about LOGISTICS as one of his challenges, there is still an urgent need for alternative robust measures to engage these criminals and their associates.

In such engagements, the issues of the ghettos and ghetto-related centers in which these heartless gangsters assemble at certain point-in-time of the day or night must be considered. Another issue for consideration by the Liberia national Police is habitat, i.e., those in whose homes these criminals and armed robbers dwell must be engaged or even made to expose such criminals or face the full weight of whatever robust measures the police may be anticipating.

Also during this period, the police, most especially those charged with the responsibility of fighting crimes must avoid all unnecessary publicities, except those aimed at assisting them for such vigorous campaign.  Let not citizens and residents of communities in and around Monrovia be allowed to instituted or employ measures all by themselves to either resist or combat armed robbery. Now must be the time to act or “things may just run out of hand”.