My year in review

THE EDITOR: The following is my year in review for 2024:

National security: A mess:

Crime: Out of control

Police: Lacking over 900 vehicles (40 per cent of 2,240); refusal to wear body cams, needs senior officers at the top.

Coast Guard: No vessels.

Air Guard: No craft, but personnel include an air vice-marshal, captain, squadron leader.

Radar: Is it functional or manned?

Fire: Lacking one fire appliance per fire station. Some units are TB and TC registration series; all are more than five years old

Army, Coast Guard, Air Guard: What can I say? Maybe appoint members as SRPs (special reserve police).

Finance: Missing billions; lack of accounting and auditing.

Health: Poorly organised and non-progressive; too many dinosaurs in the Ministry of Health and RHAs.

Agriculture: No policies for development; arable land being used for housing.

Education: The continued high failure rate in English and mathematics (arithmetic) is not being addressed at primary and secondary levels; failure to develop the non-academic curriculum developed since the 70s.

Attorney General: Too many errors and issues, legal and non-legal.

Rural Development and Local Government: Illegal and unplanned development leading to (extensive) flooding; roads are poorly maintained and constructed.

Sport: Lack of facilities; poor maintenance; lack of oversight, governance, development of national governing bodies.

Tourism: No international promotion; local sites not developed.

Public utilities: Water remains an issue with once-a-week-supply not guaranteed.

PHILIP AYOUNG-CHEE

via e-mail