Page one editorial
The capture of fugitive Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke will, hopefully, signal the end of thug rule over Jamaican communities like Tivoli Gardens and other garrisons.
We want to be among the first to express heartiest congratulations to the security forces and, in particular, the officers directly involved in apprehending Jamaica’s most wanted man.
The role of the Rev Al Miller, who was accompanying Mr Coke to the United States Embassy to hand himself over to the US authorities, will become clearer after the negotiator has been interviewed by the Constabulary. Until then, we withhold our comments on his actions.
The obvious question to be asked of Mr Coke is what took him so long to come out of hiding. Why did he wait until 73 persons in Tivoli, three members of the security forces and businessman Keith Clarke were killed and large numbers injured, and until after hundreds of millions of dollars in property damage and lost production time, not to mention the trauma felt by the entire nation? The full cost of the operation to arrest Mr Coke is still to be determined.
Whatever his motivation, Mr Coke’s capture is welcome relief to the nation. We are also relieved to hear reports that he intends to waive his right to an extradition hearing in Jamaica, in favour of being handed over to the US authorities immediately.
This will prevent the tension that could be associated with a drawn out court hearing entailing high-level security operations to protect the courts and their staff, as well as to keep Mr Coke under maximum security.
In this regard, we also welcome the extension of the State of Public Emergency in the Corporate Area by 30 days and the decision to widen its ambit to St Catherine.
There must be no let up in the offensive by the security forces to flush out the criminals and break their stranglehold on the country’s development.
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