The Tribune

A LOCAL prayer network yesterday held the second of a series of prayer drives geared toward “bettering our communities and saving lives”, with organisers stressing that the connection between crime and inner-city communities has more to do with the failure of the Church and respective homes, rather than the shortcomings of the government.

Led by Bishop Anthony Roker, pastor of Church of God of Prophecy on Second Street and Palm Tree Avenue in The Grove, and area resident Sam Williams, the group took to the St Cecilia community to interact with nearby residents and passers by.

The church sits yards from a property where a triple shooting occurred two weeks ago, resulting in three men being transported to hospital. Additionally, according to Bishop Roker, the area has been a hotspot for serious gun crimes throughout its history.

“Today needed to happen,” the minister said. “We have seen the death and the violence on these streets; the bloodshed continues day after day. We had to stand today to save our community before it is lost. We have kids here, mothers, families. It is easy to blame the government, but until we in the Church do do all we can to serve these people, we can’t point the finger. I have seen these men, the ones that die and the ones that are labelled killers; these were boys that I watched grow up.

“I can’t blame the politicians when I see these children take steps every day. It is on me and the people, the praying people of this community, to do all we could to save our kids before they become the problems in our neighbourhood. We need to start now to save the next generation. We need to strengthen our families, like they were. We need to strengthen our churches, like they were. We need to put God back in our hearts and actions like we once did,” added Bishop Roker.

Mr Williams encouraged former residents of communities like St Cecilia, The Grove, Yellow Elder and Englerston that have “taken a step forward in life” to return to their former communities and lend a helping hand to those that are still struggling.

Mr Williams, who identified himself as a former associate of former Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt, implored people like her to again walk the streets with him, “praying together, worshipping together, rebuilding our communities together”.

In mid-January the pair held a similar vigil in The Grove, at that time calling on residents in the community to “reach out more to one another” and “see what we can do” to curb crime in the community. At the time Bishop Roker claimed the group’s main objective was to help the young men in the community.