Collapse of the education system

THE EDITOR: The recent incident of an 11-year-old schoolboy being arrested and charged for selling or attempting to sell marijuana on or close to school property is another sign of the collapse and decay of the education system in TT among other things. It also shows up how the family structure has broken down completely and also the urgent need for serious intervention by the central government in providing social services to help families in crisis, as this family obviously is.

I also think that the government also needs to consider making schools and the areas around them “Drug Free Zones.” This could be done by making the school property and a 1,000 foot (300 metres) area in all directions from all schools as a drug-free area. Anyone caught with drugs within that zone would be given an additional penalty to the regular sentence for possession of drugs with the intent to sell or distribute an illegal substance. This method has been used successfully in many school districts in the USA and Canada. It has also helped to reduce the incident of drugs at or around schools. These zones would need to be clearly marked with appropriate signs for all to see.

This, along with the appropriate media coverage should serve to provide notice to all concerned that their activities will result in some stiff penalties for peddling or attempting to peddle drugs to our children. I think it is time for the Government to do something proactive to stop this scourge on society and our children in particular. This will also help in reducing much of the other crime and violence that is so prevalent in and around our schools. This new measure will only work if the police and the legal system is prepared to exercise a zero tolerance to the offenders and apply the full extent of the law to the perpetrators by charging and sentencing them appropriately.

KELVIN
C JAMES SR
Port-of-Spain