The Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) is renewing its call for changes to be made to the Praedial Larceny Prevention Act, to provide stiffer penalties for perpetrators and compensation for victims.
Outgoing JAS President Norman Grant made the call in an interview with RJR News at the Denbigh Agricultural Show in Clarendon yesterday.
Grant is recommending that the fine for persons found guilty of praedial larceny be increased from $250-thousand to five million , adding that they are causing too much pain for farmers.
“We are saying to the government that we need to address that , we need to set up a victim compensation fund that will support the farmers when they steal from them. So it needs the larceny act, the trespass act must be subject to the proceeds of crime bill…… what we need to do is to ensure that their assets are seized and we set up a victims compensation fund that will support the farmers,” he said.
The outgoing president also called for more land titles to be issued to farmers and better farm roads.
“We need to find a way to do land reform and title reform. Land needs to issue 50-thousand titles per annum, so farmers can use them as collateral….. The issue of the farm roads is deplorable. The government needs to appoint at least $1-5 billion each year to repair the farm roads. Some of these roads – the donkeys are complaining,” Grant said.
lol!! the donkeys are complaining