BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, Aug 4, CMC – Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris says his administration is willing to provide a second opportunity to young people to move away from a life of crime and was guaranteeing them a job should they do so.

“If there is any young person out there involved now in illegal activity, particularly in relation to guns, and they want to make a turn, I would guarantee them, I repeat, I am guaranteeing them a job if they are seriously committed to turn away from the life of crime,” Harris told reporters.

He said “that is the solemn guarantee I make” adding “I would guarantee you a job that you could at least earn a weekly wage if you are serious about making the turn for the better.

“The country deserves fewer criminals than we have on the streets and the cost of maintenance of the peace and security requires us to be open-minded and to even think outside the box if we are to nip this situation in the bud.”

Harris, who is also National Security Minister, said there are career opportunities available in St. Kitts and Nevis for young people, particularly school leavers, in the area of law enforcement.

 “Being in the Police Force is not just about carrying a baton, it’s not just about standing at some beat; it is also about learning a diversified array of life skills that could put you in good stead for life.

“The career paths in terms of policing now are so diverse. So for example, as we are building out our [Closed-Circuit Television] CCTV programme we need young men with knowledge in ICT to be part of that particular programme.

“As we are developing our forensic department, we need young people with expertise and experience in forensics, so there is a wide range. As we are talking about building and reorganizing our Traffic Department, there is room even in administration,” Prime Minister Harris said.

The twin-island Federation has been rocked by brazen criminal activities including murder in recent months and Harris said that as his administration moves to implement policies aimed at curbing these activities, job opportunities were also being made available to the unemployed.

“The Customs Department has a regular training programme for recruits and we want to build on that cadre of persons and so we are welcoming and encouraging people to get involved. We want our parents not to have their children at home being idle doing nothing when work is going a-begging in the country,” he told reporters.