‘Enough is enough:’ Nanaimo residents rally for more action on keeping communities safe

He said it’s important for community members to watch out for and support each other when dealing with these kinds of issues.

Opinions of the actions of the group of six which went into the encampment Sunday have been mixed.

Many residents supported a group of locals taking back what was theirs, however RCMP said the shooting and preceding events “could have been prevented” had the group contacted police.

“The biggest thing is to be vigilant and not vigilante,” Dilworth said. “There’s strength in numbers and power in paper, and we need to push to get the justice system to where it should be.”

Dwayne Dilworth from a neighbourhood watch group in Dawson Creek was asked to speak at the rally to give some insight on the actions his group have taken to make his community safer. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

The event was organized by the Nanaimo Area Public Safety Association (NAPSA)

Interim chair Collen Middleton echoed in his remarks his longstanding belief the issue is non-partisan. He said the frustration come from people being repeated victims of crime while the criminal faces little consequences from the justice system.

He also led the crowd with chants of “enough is enough!” multiple times.

Many in the crowd were carrying homemade signs echoing his concerns, along with slogans like ‘Keep in custody’, ‘Return law and order’, and ‘Protect us Eby’.

A number of politicians were in attendance, including Liberal MLA for Surrey South and critic for addiction mental health and recovery Elenore Sturko, Nanaimo City Councillors Hilary Eastmure, Ian Thrope, Erin Hemmens and Sheryl Armstrong.

Many carried signs at the rally, with around 75 people attending. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Nanaimo mayor Leonard Krog arrived shortly after the rally was finished due to a prior engagement.

He briefly spoke with people in the crowd who were critical of him for what they say is inaction on homelessness, mental health/addictions and repeat offenders.

He said he “didn’t want to sound like a broken record”, but he’s been speaking on these issues for a long time, and the shooting of the businessman was “almost inevitable”, given what he says is 30-40 years of failed social health policies.

“But it’s the crime associated with feeding the addiction that has got people really upset to the point where somebody feels compelled to put their life at risk to go and retrieve stolen property, and the end result is a pretty serious injury.”

Krog went on to say it’s frustrating to him because he’s heard complaints for years directed at his ‘inaction’ over these issues, which he reiterates are issues they don’t have the power to take meaningful action on.

“Cities don’t deliver mental health and addictions service. We don’t run institutions. We don’t deliver housing in the strict sense. We may do the rezoning and all of those things. I’m on one level extremely pleased that people are speaking out now…this is what people are concerned about, this is what they’re talking about, this is what they want fixed.”

According to a GoFundMe page set up for the victim of Sunday’s shooting, he’s safely gone through three surgeries and remains in a medically induced coma.

As of Thursday afternoon, over $20,000 had been raised to support him in his recovery.

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On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow

by Jordan Davidson

‘Enough is enough:’ Nanaimo residents rally for more action on keeping communities safe

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