President David Granger has exhorted the senior officers of the Guyana Police Force to help create an organisation that members of the public can trust to keep them and their loved ones safe and secure.
According to a Ministry of the Presidency (MoTP) release, the President was at the time speaking at the Annual Commissioner of Police Breakfast, which was held yesterday morning at the Force’s Conference Room, Eve Leary, Georgetown. He told the Force’s senior officers that “Guyanese desire a Force, which they can trust” and therefore he felt it was the responsibility of the organisation to ensure that their roles and responsibilities were clearly understood and that every effort be made to fulfil them.
His remarks came amid continuing concerns about malpractices in the police force, the crime rate and the carnage on the roads.
“This profession is based on public trust and without that trust, policing cannot succeed. I understand the importance of policing to this country and the people of this country. The people want a Police Force they can trust. The people want to cooperate with the Police. People want to look out their windows and see the Police patrolling. People want to approach the Police and get help. People want to live in a safe society. They want their girl children to go to school and come home late from lessons in safety. These are the things that all Guyanese want and I want you to be the type of Force that the Guyanese want you to be,” he declared.
The President referred to the programme that the government has embarked upon over the last four and a half years that is designed to improve security nationwide. He acknowledged that there were those who were reluctant to embrace change but expressed confidence that the changes that have been taking place will make Guyana safer for citizens and investors alike.
The Head of State observed that over its 180-year history, the role of the Police Force has evolved from being one of controlling the population to protecting the population and it is therefore important that officers recognise this.
“Everything that is happening, you will see the benefits in the years to come and I am proud and pleased that the Police have understood the changes and are working with the Commissioner to ensure the changes benefit not only the officers but the general public, which is bound to look to the Police Force for its safety. I am happy that we have put together a team and year by year changes are taking place to improve the efficiency of the Police Force. My aim is to make the Guyana Police Force the best in the Caribbean Commonwealth,” he said.
President Granger said that over the next decade, the changes that are taking place now will result in an “unimaginable” Guyana and that a better Force is needed in order to convince investors that Guyana “is the place to be.”
Granger is performing the functions of a caretaker President pending general elections on March 2nd.
The Head of State congratulated Commissioner of Police, Leslie James and his Deputy Commissioners for the work done over the past year as he noted that they have embraced the much needed changes that are taking place and will continue to take place to make the Force a better, more efficient organisation.
“I congratulate the Commissioner and his team for the zeal with which they have implemented those changes. When you look at the distance, we have travelled over the last four and half years, you will see the placing of Mounted Police, the regionalisation of the Police command structure [and] I have appointed four Deputy Commissioners of Police. These are important changes that will strengthen the institution of the Police Force so that younger officers can see a clear path, a professional path if they are going to go to Intelligence, Operations, Administration, they can now see that the ceiling that prevented them from moving forward and upward has been removed,” President Granger stated.
Commissioner James in his remarks, said that while the Police Force has had a good year overall, there have been numerous challenges including the misconduct of both senior and junior ranks. He however noted that the successes of the Force have outnumbered the challenges and the ranks and officers were to be commended.
“We have been able to achieve, as mandated by our Strategic Plan, our Police Reform Board. It is the oversight body for the Plan, which ends in 2021. We were able to implement Human Resources departments across the Police Divisions. We have been able to achieve the alignment of Police Divisions across Regions one to 10. That realignment has seen significantly a better management of resources, human and otherwise and has significantly [seen] better management of crime and traffic. We have seen an increase in road carnage and this has resulted in the operationalisation of ‘Safe Roads’. That operation is expected to last for as long as we think we have seen a change in the attitude of motorists,” he said.
James emphasised that the Force welcomes the public’s scrutiny since ranks are expected to provide their duties with diligence and professionalisation and promised to continue to work on its public relations, public trust and image to ensure that it becomes “a hallmark of service and protection.”
Also present at the breakfast were Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan; Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams; and Minister of Citizenship and former Police Commissioner, Winston Felix, the release added.
