Dear Editor
PLEASE permit me to respond to a letter captioned City patrol in the cemetery, penned by Modi Sankar, which appeared in the Tuesday, January 9, 2018 edition of your newspaper. ”Those who forget their past are doomed to repeat it”, George Santayana. The missive penned by Mr. Modi Sankar seeking to condemn the plan of the Town Clerk of Georgetown to install guards at the cemetery is pathetic.

Firstly, it is popular knowledge that the cemetery with aggressive overgrowths is often used as a seclusion zone for the criminal-minded people who pounce on unsuspecting citizens. It is sickening to hear of how women are abused and men are robbed by day and night when they attempt to use the cemetery road, which connects two communities in the southern section of the city.

Also, it has become the custom and practice for some citizens as they traverse the area, to deposit large bags of waste at the entrance of the cemetery. Boosting the security at the cemetery would enable the council to catch cemetery litter bugs and place them before the courts.

The arguments by Mr. Moti in his missive are unjustifiable and ridiculous. Often we hear of criminal acts committed against the dead, in which jewellery is removed from the corpse or the corpse is thrown out from the casket. There are instances where caskets vanish into the air, leaving dead bodies in proximity to tombs; this I would leave for another discussion. The fact of the matter is that we must confront our current realties with plausible solutions.

Historically, it was always the standard operational procedure of the Council to secure its assets: markets, municipal buildings and other facilities. The maintenance of the aesthetics and security of the cemetery falls within the parameters of the Council. The placing of security personnel and restoring the gates would serve as a deterrent to criminal elements. It is improper not to secure an age-old facility from those who varied on the wrong side of the law.

Regards
Waveel Parker