The Suva Retailers Association has commended the work carried out by the Fiji Police Force to foster a safe environment for businesses.

Association President, Jitesh Patel says they’ve noted a huge decline in crime rates during this COVID crisis.

Patel says the Force has assured businesses will continue working alongside the Association.

He says with business operations returning to normal, they hope to see the crime rate under control.

“We expect to see an increase in petty crimes as there is a lot of unemployment around, so petty crimes might increase but the police have got a good grasp of the city at the moment as we have seen a reduction in crimes, we expect that to continue.”

Commissioner of Police, Sitiveni Qiliho says people play a pivotal role in helping law enforcement officers tighten security.

Qiliho says as things slowly return to normal, Police will continue tightening its security measures.

“The time for warning from us is long gone, we just have to be tough and enforce what needs to be enforced.”

Most businesses operate until 4.30 pm daily and once 60-percent of the target population is vaccinated, they may revise the operating hours.

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