Community Activist, Dr Venus ‘Rastaman’ Cherry has come out in support of increased police manpower stationed on major roads and on the streetsides. Cherry, who has often called on the top brass of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force to clamp down on traffic offences and road recklessness, says the additional personnel on the road provides motorists and pedestrians with a greater sense of safety.
“We’ve gotten too comfortable with lawlessness. We’ve gotten too comfortable with parking anywhere when we want, how we want, stopping anywhere, not indicating, pulling out in the road, stopping in the middle of the road, stopping around corners, have those bright lights out on people, driving without insurance, driving without registration. We’ve gotten too comfortable with that,” he emphasized during one of his live broadcasts Wednesday this week.
Last year, the Saint Lucia Fire Service responded to over seven thousand road incidents as the numbers of fatalities increased. Acting Police Commissioner Verne Garde, before 2024 year end, promised increased focus on traffic safety among motorists.
Cherry notes that citizens have shown a brazen disregard for others’ safety while traversing the road. “People have ignored the rules of the road for so long that now, when they get issued a ticket, they’re surprised,” he said.
The Force is currently recruiting more officers to bolster its crime fighting efforts.
