The Editor, Sir:

Today, I hung my head in shame, the STAR carried the horrible, unbelievable headline of over 200 people being forced out of their community at Gravel Heights, St Catherine, by gunmen, claiming that the people are supportive of the police and are 'informers'.

The harsh reality we face is that the criminals started by taking over individual businesses from people and nothing was done. They have now progressed to seizing areas from the communities, so that all 'informers' can be dislodged. Next, they will seize entire villages and before long, towns and cities (Spanish Town readily comes to mind) and before long, our beloved country will be in ruins and will be the site of criminal carnage.

'House cleaning'

The other harsh reality is that neither Prime Minister Bruce Golding nor Leader of the Opposition, Portia Simpson Miller, can claim righteous indignation, having both benefited from ethnically cleaned areas; for was not West Kingston politically formed by the forceful dislodgement of people? And was not Southwest St Andrew politically formed by the forceful dislodgement of people? The so-called 'house cleaning' coined by the Nazis.

Now we know the political genesis of the problem. Now we know the criminal 'copycat' of that methodology. Then we only need to see what fundamental changes that can be achieved to bring about a final solution once and for all.

It is clear that the police cannot protect us, relegated as they are to overseeing the exodus of the people, they are overextended, they are overworked and, frankly, incapable of managing the present situation.

We must, therefore, fight on our own! For too long the legal possession of guns has been the privilege of the rich man and the brown man. Let us give all decent law-abiding citizens the right to bear arms, to carry their own guns, to be able to defend themselves. Let us, one and all, be empowered to fight the gunman, the criminal, the murderer and the terrorist for ourselves, for why should the criminals have so many guns and we the people have none?

'Fire for fire and blood for blood'

Let it be 'fire for fire and blood for blood' until the savages are removed from our midst. Let us 'unite; unite and fight' for it is only then we will be free from the tyranny of the wicked and we will be able to say "free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, free at last!"

I will wager that kicking off doors, hijacking of cars, abducting women and children, drive-by shootings, carefree robberies, extortion, 'don control' will soon cease. The country will be restored to the way we were.

I have heard Colonel Trevor MacMillan, minister of national security, support this right to bear arms. I hope he will have the guts to stand up for his convictions and to propose this very necessary policy initiative, for God only knows that now, more than at any other time, we need brave, strong, decisive leadership.

I am, etc.,

Dr J.V.FORD

jephthahford@hotmail.com

Vanford Medical Centre

1 Pennant Terrace

Kingston 19

Via Go-Jamaica