Article content

Ottawa chalked up its first shooting of 2019 only four days into the year, an auspicious start towards another record-breaking year of gun and gang violence. The apparent perpetrators were arrested and charged, which is a good start, but so much more needs to be done to curb the gun and gang violence in our fair city.

Four years ago, I ran for council and campaigned on building our community, which meant addressing the obvious symptoms of crime and gang violence in our neighbourhood. My concerns about the increased symptoms of crime were met with ridicule. Over the last four years, I’ve continued to speak out about the guns and gang violence, all the time watching the violent crime rate in South Ottawa steadily rise.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Pye: We need a serious plan to tackle guns and gangs in South Ottawa Back to video

December’s public safety meeting was a positive first step to dealing with guns and gang violence in South Ottawa, with minor commitments made by Mayor Jim Watson and Coun. Diane Deans. We need resources committed to Ottawa South, targeted funds and programming aimed at our at-risk communities. We need legislative changes to aid Ottawa Community Housing in dealing with problem tenants, and we need accountability, as talk is cheap. But making real progress requires hard work and determination.