Monrovia – The chairman of the community watch forum of Montserrado County, Edwin Kanneh has called on the county’s leadership and the Liberia National Police to work closely with the forum.
He said without coordination from the police and financial support from the Montserrado Legislative caucus, crime rate will continue to be on the increase in the county.
In an interview with FPA on Wednesday, September 11, Kanneh complained that his organization is not getting the necessary support needed from the police to curb crimes in the city of Monrovia since the drawdown of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).
“The community is where these criminals live and we are the ones that can get rid of these people. Without the collaboration of the community and the security apparatus, there will be no reduction in crime,” he said.
According to Kanneh, community watch forums in other counties are operating well but unfortunately Montserrado County continues to face difficulties.
“We are challenged because there is inadequate support from the Montserrado Legislative caucus and lack of coordination from the Liberia National police,” he said.
Kanneh stressed that his organization is the bedrock of national security because “they are the ones who work closely with the communities.”
Meanwhile, he added that his organization was able to get rid of super Friday by collaborating with another organization called Reclaiming Liberia Beaches and water-ways security to keep students out of the beaches on Friday from 3-6pm.
He maintained that with the requisite logistics, his organization will be able to buttress the LNP in combating crimes in the county.
“If the community watch forum is not there to give effective information, the LNP job will continue to be difficult. For example, sometimes criminals will call the police and when the police get there it will be a scam to divert them from where the actual crime is happening, and as a result of that the LNP will burn their fuel or gasoline for nothing.”
The community watch forum was established in all the counties by UNMIL to assist the National security in reporting and somehow helping to curb crimes.