As a youth empowerment officer who, as a part of the State's youth development thrust, has worked in conjunction with the National Secondary Student's Council and other related activities at Ferncourt High, I would like to offer my condolences to the school family and the extended community which was rocked by the sad and untimely acts of October 20.

It would, however be careless of us to seek, in the heat of the grief and shock, to apportion blame and seek retribution. The act, along with others of the same nature, point to the need for continued youth development and mediation activities that are already in place.

I daresay, if we now look to reduce emphasis on this area of activity as "uneconomic", we may just open the doors to more acts of this shocking and heinous nature.

I am, etc.,

GAVIN MYERSggmyers@gmail.com

Steer Town

St Ann