Belize - Belize News - Channel5Belize.com - Great Belize Productions - Belize Breaking News
Home » Social Issues » Activists want to prevent crime wave from reaching Belmopan
May 27, 2010

Activists want to prevent crime wave from reaching Belmopan

nigel petillo

The Belize Grassroots Youth Empowerment Association has been leading a community based charge when it comes to finding practical as well as controversial solutions to crime.  The group organized a community meeting at the YWCA last week in Belize City which had participation of the media, the church, politicians, representatives from the government, members of the police association, Belizeans for Justice and the public.  Last night BGYEA’s president and Belmopan resident, Nigel Petillo organized a similar meeting in the capital.  While the Belize City event was to curb crime, the focus of the Belmopan event was to prevent the crime wave from washing over the country’s capital.

Nigel Petillo, Pres., Bze Grassroots Youth Empowerment Assn.

“The presentation we made in Belize City last week was to say hey guys, we here at BGYEA all the way from Belmopan are concerned about what’s going on in Belize City. Eventually that crime wave will hit us here in Belmopan and other surrounding villages. It will extend to us. We went to Belize City and asked Belize City to put together a committee. We went to Belize City and told Belize City the same thing we are telling you; stop pointing fingers and get together and forma committee that would do the physical work. When I say the physical work, you can’t di direct youth work from wah office and yoh know di youths. You need to come out here, find people weh know di youths, people who can actually establish contact with youths, who are influential to the youths. That’s why I mentioned the artists, the basketball players, the singers, the musicians. They are respected and if not respected, loved by people in the community. The baddest ah man wid gun to di youngest ah youth respect di athletes, di ballers, di footballers. Let’s utilize these people. The police can’t do it on their own. Operation Jaguar has a team built up mainly of police officers, B.D.F., Coastguards and people of authority to that extent. We are saying that most of those people are the same people that will be doing the ground work and it won’t be easy for them. The police will not be able to get the type of information they need from the youths. They won’t get as much of as response that we believe we can get as grass youths. Youths know youths best. They won’t get that response that they really need. Most of the time the youths will feel as if though they are being attacked. I’m not here to cast no stones but I’m giving you the feedback that’s on the streets. That’s why we here have decided to what I’d like to say take responsibility of the streets of Belmopan by forming this here committee tonight.”

Government is launching its own plan on June second.


Viewers please note: This Internet newscast is a verbatim transcript of our evening television newscast. Where speakers use Kriol, we attempt to faithfully reproduce the quotes using a standard spelling system.

Advertise Here

13 Responses for “Activists want to prevent crime wave from reaching Belmopan”

  1. Elgin Martinez says:

    Appoint Nigel Petillo as the Minister of National Security.I believe this Young man would do a better job than Barrow and his lame Cabinet.

  2. maddyvandijk says:

    Belmopan is 99% crime free at the moment and we would like to see it stay that way at any cost.
    The true residents of Belmopan are at risk everyday they get on the bus or get in their cars to drive into Belize City to work, unfortunately, this has to be done in order to maintain a decent life in Belmopan.

    Also many people from the city, from the south and the north and the islands are relocating themselves to Belmopan, along with some of the good people the bad will come along as well. We cannot start asking people relocating from Belize City to Belmopan for Identification or else all hell will break loose, or can we?

    For now, go to the Belmopan police station and start from there, we cannot have crooks as criminals to set good examples for our decent children in Belmopan.
    For now, Belmopan do not have gangs and the youths tend to want more out of live by working hard to get it.

  3. Sally Perkins says:

    THANK YOU MR PETILLO IN YOUR EFFORTS TO CRACK DOWN ON THE CRIME IN THE NATION’S CAPITAL,MY LITTLE SISTER WAS A VICTIM OF A HORRENDOUS ROBBERY IN BELMOPAN LAST WEEK WHERE SHE WAS BEATEN TO A CRITICAL CONDITION,SHE WAS HURT VERY BADLY PHYSICALLY AND EMOTIONALLY.THIS CHILD IS A VERY BRIGHT AND UP COMING NURSING STUDENT AT UNIVERSITY OF BELIZE BELMOPAN CAMPUS,IT IS A SHAME NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE IN REFRENCE TO THIS INCEDENT CONSIDERING THIS IS OUR FUTURE GENERATION.

  4. Belize It says:

    This I love to see. So many pessimistic people commenting in the last few days talking about Belize becoming the next Jamaica. But this is exactly why we won’t. Keep it up BGYEA!

  5. macal rivera says:

    look like nigel petillo wanna be the next PM!! ha ha ha what a joke, give a break and BOOM he will be possesed my the same demon within LADY Z. HAha ha ha ha

  6. SO DISAPPOINTED says:

    Let’s not be so negative macal at least he is doing something and trying. What are you doing???? It is up to us to keep our politicians honest but as long as we get a share of the spoils we turn a blind eye. Nigel I hope your heart is in the right place so keep up the fight.

  7. Jose Chacon says:

    Belmopan is pretty calm but things are starting to come up. In my area, Las Flores, we have started for some time now a group that seeks to make a difference in our community.

    We have been faced with some of our youths being brainwashed into gang activity by just a few rotten eggs that have migrated to Belize with the wrong purpose. To add to that, some recent deportees have come into our community with negative “bad man” mentality of what they see in the US and could not do there themselves. Now, as they reach into Belize they are “badman”. My fellow Belizeans, we really need to take this situation serious. We have had some “facy” new comers that have started to approach the hard working people and demanded “gang taxes” as is done in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and other countries!

    Nigel and the BGYEA, I applaud your effort as I have said it to you personally. I would like to see that your initiative includes some of our people so as to have better coverage and more strenght in combating this crime situation. I also invite you, law abiding citizens to start your own community groups that speak to the youths and coach them in the right direction. Many times, youths have no one to advice them. They lack good role models. It is our duty, as responsible citizens, to be a good example to the youths.

    Macal, I would like to see you congratulate Nigel Petillo’s effort rather than draw on political conclusions. I would like to see you take a stand beside these brethrens and make a difference!

  8. macal rivera says:

    meka I tell u something to you “so dissapointed and chacon, i no di be negative, dah just the truth brother, for the past years I have seen honest people trying to make a diffrence ina belize, but once they ina POWA e go to dem head and thing change, and to honest with you guys dis ya black woman no di get noting from bluw nor red, I di work had for my living you hear, I no depend on no politician you hea me,and I di do my part by raising eight picni with good values and moral , how is the world I no wen get my kicks out a dis, I don see it before, mucha,people go inclean and they come out rotten worse than stinkung egg.

  9. Hooyah says:

    Just wait til Macal gets jacked or something (let’s hope not still) for him to get the sense. Criminals don’t care if you’re PUP, UDP or plain S-T-U-P-I-D as Macal is, to come and take what you’ve worked hard for (and in these times, even your life). Who feels it, knows it. Biggup Pets! Let’s keep the Garden City free from the Belize City “weeds”.

  10. Bulba Martinez says:

    Macal Rivera, I still di try undastan whe you you di try fi explain. Tell mi something, you di actually seh mek wi noh try do something about di violence whe wi di face eena wi country?. Somebody hafto tek wa stand and wi need fi give you or anybody else wa chance fi change things fi di betta. If somebody noh do it, dehn how we wa know di good from di bad?. Unfortunately, dat da di way di world turn and wi have to live wid it. I proud ah you fi live wa decent life and hou you discipline all ah you picni dem the right way, maybe di rest ah di people dem could use you as wa positive example fi do di same thing, even though we might have adda people out ya who might di think different bout you!!!. Dat noh fair to you na true?. We have to think bout fi we picni dem safety all di time because wi noh want nothing bad happen to dem, soh please join een with Nigel or anybody fi have wa safer Belize. We noh know if or when violence wa hit wi home. Every one a wi have di right to fi we opinion, but wi noh have di right fi accuse or judge anybody innocently. Atleast nobody noh di seh dat Nigel di run fi be di Prime Minista a Belize. If my undastanding serve me right, Elgin di seh maybe Nigel shoulda be di next Prime Minista and dat da Elgin personal opinion. I deh wid protection and safety fi wi people dem and dat include you and your eight picni dem, soh I wa rally behind Nigel or anybody else whe believe dat Belize in a whole safe fi move bout like wi want without any fear. loosen up Macal, God give all a wi wa chance and ih tell wi fi love wi neighbors like wi self.

  11. cat dog says:

    Big up Jose and Bulba. Macal whoever… you aarite or what?? Belize need more community minded individuals like Mr. Petillo. I would like to know where macal got the authority from to be judging this man prematurely. talk about negative vibes……..

  12. maddyvandijk says:

    I think you guys totally misunderstood the point that Macal was trying to make here. She was merely stating a general fact about politicians. By making a point here macal was not stating that what Petillo is doing is wrong, nor did she say she was not a supporter of his good intentions. Strange, how easy it is for people to blow things out of proportion, and not even notice it.

    Politicians talk the talk before they get voted in as ministers, and then shortly after they become lying, cheating, raving, good for nothing politicians. Making lies sound truthful and crimes respectable, and giving the people false hope. (Not talking about Petillo, he is not a politician)
    Look at how the people of Belize are now viewing the politicians today; they are taking the comedians more seriously, while the politicians are being taking as jokes.

    Enough already.

  13. macal rivera says:

    tell dem Mady, dem people shtupid, I neva gan dah school, but I have common sense, dem people read but they no andastan weh dem di read, they get hypop fi nothing,
    madafire, uno go back and read and andastan uno hea me!!!
    foolish people

Comments are closed