President Danilo Medina declared yesterday Tuesday 28 May that the Comprehensive Public Safety Plan is one of his government’s leading priorities and he is committed to seeing it go into action. While chairing a meeting of the Public Safety Council, Medina stressed that the council would remain in permanent session until the objectives were achieved. At his side, Presidential Minister Gustavo Montalvo said that one of the aspects that was required were reliable statistics (as used by former NYC mayor Rudy Guiliani) as a way to track criminal activities and improve public safety measures in high-crime areas.
While there were few details from the meeting, Montalvo did present the 2012 Statistical Bulletin with a detailed accounting of criminal incidents throughout the country. The Public Safety Council includes the Minister of the Interior and Police, the Armed Forces Minister, the National Police Chief, the head of the National Drug Control Agency, the Presidential Advisor on Anti-Drug Trafficking Programs, and the chairman of the National Drug Council, as well as Montalvo and the President.
Polls show that fighting crime and increasing safety is a top priority for Dominicans. The rising crime rate is making headlines, as high-profile show business personalities have reported being victims of armed robberies.