Dear Editor,
As a long time visitor and now property owner in the Algarve, I have grown to love the region, the climate and its gentle, tolerant people.
I have seen many changes over the years, many for the better, the A22, the much improved N125, better care for animals; dogs in particular have a much better life than in the past when attitudes were very different.
As better education and modern enlightened values have started to take root amongst the younger populace, I am amazed that the politicians and police, who are ultimately employed by the politicians, seem to be stuck in a time warp.
The region depends upon tourism and the income of long term expat residents, like it or not. The politicians seem intent on driving out the foreign property owners and killing local businesses by a mixture of ludicrous tax hikes, crazy road toll ideas and dubious golf and resort developments which are usually driven by hidden profit motives.
The police are happy to target foreign cars and charge a fortune for minor speeding offences, whilst sitting on their backsides and ignoring the spiralling crime fuelled by a drug dealing culture, which is obvious to anybody sitting in the main square in Lagos, where hard drugs are dealt openly in front of the police office in the main square.
We all love a liberal, tolerant society, but one thing is for sure…where you have drugs…you have crime. It needs to be dealt with and soon before the good people desert the sinking ship for safer climes.
Dave MacDonald, By email
