RCMP MUST ACT FASTER

Yellowknife RCMP have prided themselves on being tough on drugs. With
that in mind, the slow response from the police earlier this month
after a Frame Lake resident reported 97 suspicious baggies littering
neighbourhood yards is nothing short of discouraging.

The suggestion from a dispatcher and a staff sergeant that police
officers were too busy to show up, especially given it was Super
Soccer weekend, isn't adequate.

Building confidence in its police force is essential to a strong
community, which in this case has been dealt a blow, at least for the
Frame Lake woman who said she feels she was "blown off" by the RCMP.
Most police officers are hard working, dedicated professionals. They
should be given credit for creating early awareness around the
dangerous drug ecstasy, blamed for the deaths of a few teens in
Alberta in recent months. Recognizing that drugs which are a problem
in Alberta often find their way to the NWT, police were quick to get
the word out to the public here last week.

So they have a handle on the "proactive" part, which the RCMP likes
to emphasize. Now they have to improve on the responsive end. The
next time a call is made about suspected drug paraphernalia, it
shouldn't take two days to get a response.