Patrolling the Essequibo River poses severe challenges for the Guyana Police Force. What is available is inadequate for effective patrols and investigations of issues in that area, Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee said yesterday.
In a written circulated response to a question posed by PNCR-IG Member of Parliament Mervyn Williams, Rohee said “… one can hardly be satisfied… until it can provide a boat service in all riverain communities”.
Williams had asked Rohee to inform the National Assembly of the availability of patrol boats to service the two sub-divisions of Division ‘D’ (West Demerara and East Bank Essequibo) of the Guyana Police Force.
Rohee said there were currently three boats available to both sub-divisions, on a 24-hour basis.
Williams also questioned the force’s human resource capability to man the boats and Rohee said such resources were “adequate at this time”.
He said the current operational capacity of the boats of the force covers the Demerara River between Timehri and Georgetown.
The minister also pointed out that a boat was currently being made available for the police in ‘G’ Division in the Essequibo River and that the police currently have a boat at Charity and another one at Wakenaam. These, he said, were supported by two boats owned by the Community Policing Groups of those areas.
Patrols are also done by one boat based at Bartica and supported by one Community Policing Group boat, Rohee said.
