PRIME Minister Bruce Golding has accused the Opposition of hampering the fight against crime by voting against a second 30-day extension of the State of Emergency, as recommended by security forces.

Speaking in the text of an address to the nation, scheduled to begin at 8:00 pm tonight, Golding acknowledged that having to enact a State of Emergency, which begun on May 23, was regrettable but that it had helped bring down the murder rate from five to two per day. Security forces are working on an alternative plan taking effect on Friday and to be outlined to the media by security forces tomorrow, he said.

“During the debate, the Opposition opposed the extension, in effect opposing the strong recommendations made by the security forces, and when the vote was taken its members all abstained so we were not able to secure the required votes. The State of Emergency will, therefore, come to an end tomorrow. What this means is that the police and the military will no longer have the benefit of emergency powers in pursuing their operations,” he said.

Thanking security forces for their work, Golding said that they would now have to rely even more upon members of the public to come forward with information. He said that additional measures are being made to protect witnesses and that the court system would fast-track trials of cases involving serious crimes and high-profile offenders.

“The efforts of the police and military over the last two months have had a game-changing effect. We have seen what can be accomplished when there is the will and unity of purpose. We have shown that the monster of crime can be confronted and defeated. The non-extension of the State of Emergency is a setback but the battle can be won, must be won and will be won,” he said.