Premier: Crime is a mindset, don’t blame low employment
Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has argued that crime in the Virgin Islands is rooted more in attitudes and values than in unemployment, pushing back against claims that joblessness is the main driver of criminal activity.
Dr Wheatley dismissed the idea that crime falls only when there is large-scale employment or construction projects. He said it was “very simplistic” and even “dangerous” to send the message that jobs alone prevent crime.
“Before the Virgin Islands had anything at all, we were in abject poverty in the Virgin Islands. You know, we found a way to make things happen for ourselves legally through hard work,” Dr Wheatley stated.
He pointed out that jobs exist in the territory, with government issuing “hundreds, thousands of work permits every year”.
Instead, he explained, the challenge lies in a skills gap, social conditions, and choices made by young people.
“Even if there’s a job to do, somebody may choose to go with the fast and the quick money… expensive jewellery, expensive cars, and a certain type of lifestyle as opposed to hard work,” Premier Wheatley asserted.
Wider social issues
The Premier said the problem must be tackled through strengthening morals, values, and parenting, not just employment figures.
“Crime, above all else, is a mindset,” he emphasised.
He warned that children growing up without support or guidance were more vulnerable to criminal behaviour. Dr Wheatley highlighted government programmes such as the RATED initiative, which offers landscaping and skills training opportunities, but noted that in some cases “you have a hard time finding persons who are unemployed now to participate in the programme”.
The Premier tied his comments to the upcoming anti-crime summit, which he said would lead to a national strategy.
“What we want to do is come together as a whole society… and have a strategy to address those gaps so that we can better mitigate against crime and persons who are going down the wrong path,” he explained.
Crime has been a recurring concern in the BVI, with the territory experiencing spikes in violence in recent years.
A series of murders and gun-related incidents prompted the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force to increase patrols and seek stronger community engagement. Dr Wheatley stressed that the responsibility rests not only with the government but with the wider society.
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This dude is a fule
FOOL
I had a little part time job premiere and a little side hustle .
We are not we are blaming You.
You are a Dictator. (Fraser -COI)
You lead with a convicted criminal hanging proudly on the wall behind your head.
You allow fear to rule our country and our streets.
You allow scooter riders to ride around being held to account by none of the existing laws of the land.
You do nothing about the corruption in the DMV that keeps cars with deeply tinted windows hiding guns, drugs and criminals as they drive freely amongst us.
You do not even hold your own Government to its own rules and have Gov Pickups and cars heavily tinted so thugs can go about their business unseen and unknown.
You invite gangsters to spout lyrics celebrating gangster life and drugs and guns and do nothing but obstruct the police and their attempts for vet out the corrupt and criminal amongst them.
You hide behind secret reports, hidden accounts and are hoping for Independence to come and save you from oversight and accountability.
We have no arrests or prosecutions of the customs and immigration authororities who came under the spotlight of the Fahie criminal networks.
We have no arrests or police investigation of the crimes with in Government and the Public Service to move funds by unknown and un named people. Even the Minister of Finance professes not to know who authorised the illegal movement of money into an already bankrupt bank.
Criminals are your guiding light.
You are the problem.
We blame your employment by 487 people to be the Dictator of the VI.
Unemployment is not the problem.
Employment is. Yours.
Remember he can’t willfully lie about that particular set of money which he full well knows about, and if he doesn’t know why is he the minister of finance. Somebody please ask him who moved the money.
Something is dreadfully wrong with this man. First of all unemployment is high. Secondly if you do not provide opportunities for human beings to live they will do the wrong things to survive. You do not need a phd to know this.
He pointed out that jobs exist in the territory, with government issuing “hundreds, thousands of work permits every year”.
Permits are issued but not in the thousands.
“Natalio Wheatley has argued that crime in the Virgin Islands is rooted more in attitudes and values than in unemployment, pushing back against claims that joblessness is the main driver of criminal activity”
Rising unemployment can be linked to a potential increase in crime. Do not be naive about this Premier Wheatley.
He warned that children growing up without support or guidance were more vulnerable to criminal behaviour.
Really! Do some serious is research on crime in the Virgin Islands and not rely on statistics from England and America. When individuals face job loss and economic hardship they may turn to crime as a means of survival or out of frustration and social exclusion which we have in the Virgin Islands.
Yes Crime is a mindset.
Such as associating yourself with convicted criminals.
VIP on their parade vehicle were blatantly displaying the picture of Andrew Fahie who is a convicted Cocaine trader.
If VIP wants to stop crime they should lead by example and finally stay away from criminals.
Until then, they are to blame.
Poor Education
No jobs
No role models
Poor minimum wage
People failing to make ends meet, pay their rents and put food on the table!! This means they will turn to crime to survive.
Fix cost of living first, the ridiculous prices for rent especially a 1 bedroom and the prices at the supermarket where $100 cant even get you one full bag of groceries and no one is barely hiring due to the high cost gov got on imports, so yes Mr. premier its a chain reaction so fix the cost of living and watch everything change after otherwise go and sit down
The Premier is right on this one! It is not the lack of employment, not even the lack of money, motivating persons to commit crime in this community. Nothing to do with it.
YOU CAN ALWAYS BLAME THE WHITE COLONIALIST SLAVE MASTERS , AS THAT HAS BECOME THE NEW NORM THESE DAYS , AND IF YOU CANNOT FIND AN EXCUSE TO BLAME THEM THEN SOMEBODY OR SOMEYHING ELSE HAS TO TAKE THE BLAME THATS JUST HOW WE ROLL
i half agree
cuz one side you have a lot of youths who finish school and can’t no entry level jobs… plus grads will try apply for scholarships and cant get it unles them in a certain circle or family then wen they pay their own way and come back them cant get a government job cuz it them spots set up taken by the well known families and friends
other half yea the youths now heavily idolize crime life so in a way yes is mindset. and other following to fit in. listen to dancehall music and you will hear lyics about sex,drug,gangs,violence,fastlife etc n thats wha them listening too and ofc the wannabe rappersssss
And what heck is your mindset ?
This is the thing that gets me annoyed with these Politicians. They see Nothing, absolutely Nothing to associate their Mindset with the Criminal activities in this Territory. The Devil finds Work for idle Hand and Minds to do. Their Criminal Mindsets of suspending the Consumer Protection Bill. Single handedly allowing one person in the HOA to do so with No Date for ever enacting the Bill, What do you call that? Not Criminality? Only a Criminal Minded Person will think on doing something like that. The Game of Politics by Politicians throughout the World is based on Corruption and Criminality. Set the Example for the young People Then we will have Better Societies. Children Learn what they Live. They have No Positive Examples, Then we turn around and Bash them every chance we get. Let us All take a good Look in our Mirrors and ask ourselves Questions. What Positive Example is my actions portraying to our Young people? There, you will get your Answer Because our Hearts do condemn us.
Skills gap meh eye. I visited a certain grocery store and almost all of the employees are Asian. I am talking about packers, cashiers, bakers, and everything in the store. What special skills do you need to do these jobs? Why do we have to import these skills? I understand if it is a skill set that we cannot find locally, but it seems to me that everybody who feels like bringing somebody, no matter what the job is, applies and Labour simply stamps, sure, approved on every application. That is a recipe for problems and we are seeing the fruits of that right now.
Certainly the Hon. Premier knows better than he is spouting. Some will not work, but unemployment has never been to this magnitude and what scares me is nobody and I mean nobody is vetting these persons that are now running around our country and bringing their young adult children who nobody vets either. Where there is no vision, the people will indeed perish.
Mr. Premier, why don’t you give your salary to the petty criminals for a year; you work, well, in the hustle of a couple low-paying jobs, and see, if you may not have the inclinations to commit nefarious acts, to supplement your income…
THE PROBLRM IS MONEY!
AND THE CONSISTENT, AND CONTINUAL LACK THEREOF!
And, for our Premier, not to see the correlations of money and crime, says to me, this country, and the mentality of our leadership, really is on an economic trajectory of failure!
It’s true..regardless what you think of the messenger.
If Crime is a mindset you should be in JAIL! Absolutely agree with you..remember the situation at The Trade Dept. awhile back? How is she DIRECTOR of anything She shouldn’t have a job but is seen travelling to CARIFESTA with you.
He pointed out that jobs exist in the territory, with government issuing “hundreds, thousands of work permits every year”.
Really. renewals maybe but ghost riders are present