FM community leader proposes penny tax to help impoverished areas

FORT MYERS, Fla.- In just days, Lee County Sheriff’s deputies will partner with Fort Myers police to address the rash of violence in the city.

City leaders are trying to implement solutions by looking at the root of the problem. Law enforcement and city officials met for two hours Monday morning to keep the discussion going on how to curb the gun violence in Fort Myers. This comes after seven people were shot in seven hours last Wednesday and a man was shot and killed at a 7-Eleven over the weekend.

“You guys need to stop looking at things and look into things because at the end of the day it does affect you. This is all about leadership, not leaders,” Fort Myers Councilman Johnny Streets said during the meeting.

Councilman Streets is hoping a new city manager is appointed soon so they can get moving on a new police chief.

Abdul’Haq Muhammed, the executive director of the Quality Life Center, wants to start a penny tax that would benefit areas of poverty in Lee County such as Dunbar, North Fort Myers, Tice and Pine Manor.

“The idea there is to empower those communities that have historically been disenfranchised and to be able to address dollars to save youth.”

During the meeting, Muhammed said quality education is the key.

“It’s better to have a child with his eyes behind a microscope, than to have his eyes behind a 9-millimeter,” Muhammed said.

The Quality Life Center plans on holding a round table discussion with teens on Wednesday to listen to their perspective on the violence problem in their community.