It appears some residents of Denham Town in west Kingston have taken the popular saying 'cleanliness is next to Godliness' to the extreme.

According to a story published in the Wednesday STAR, thugs from the area have been doing their part to keep the area clean by beating residents they deem to be untidy. It was reported that the thugs demand that the newly built housing scheme be kept clean and enforce 'punishment' on those who defy their orders.

While the idea behind this initiative is a good one, we cannot condone the abuse that is meted out to delinquents. It is good to see that a clean environment is at the top of the list of those in the community, but to beat those deemed uncooperative is simply wrong.

Some may say that this is the only way to get through to unruly residents, but this cannot be so. In fact, a system where residents are forced to clean up the trash in front of their homes or pay a fine would have been much better. Perhaps, those in charge of the 'system' could consider this approach and who knows, probably they would have more success. In times as hard as these, it is much easier to keep a clean environment than to pay a fine.

Violence is never the answer and even though the initiative is a good one, perhaps the mode of punishment needs to be revisited to make it an even better idea.