The police yesterday took possession of two major stations at Parika in Region Three and Anna Regina in Region Two and two outposts at the Onderneeming Sand Pit and Lima Sands, both on the Essequibo Coast.
Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn presided over the ceremonies.
According to a release from the Guyana Police Force, the Parika Police Station was remodelled through the Inter-American Development Bank’s Citizen Security Strengthening Programme at a sum of over $60M.
The release said that the modern facility is “community-based” and will give the citizens of the region a better opportunity to file reports, especially sensitive reports where the need for confidentiality is high.
The new station will also house a domestic violence room, a juvenile-friendly holding area, child-friendly area, witness protection room, a case management room, a case management system, integrated crime information system, an Immigration section and other offices.
The $215.1m Divisional Headquarters at Anna Regina on the Essequibo Coast was constructed by Builders Hard-ware and General Supplies and funded by the Government of Guyana, a release from the police said. It was the realisation of a promise made by President Irfaan Ali to residents of Essequibo during an outreach to Region Two
With its modern exterior and interior design, the Divisional Headquarter will also house several departments and facilities including a domestic violence room, a juvenile-friendly holding area, a child-friendly area, a witness protection room, a case management room, a case management system, a traffic department and a criminal investigation department.
The newly constructed station will also house the Anna Regina Immigration Service which will provide decentralized Immigration Services to residents of Regions One and Two, the police said.
Ten new vehicles were handed over to the police force by Essequibo businessmen Tamesh and Suresh Jagmohan.
“We have to respond to domestic violence, assaults, robberies… we have to res-pond to those issues with alacrity…we should have no problem now that we have 10 or more new vehicles and I think the (Police) Commissioner is talking about bringing up a few more pickups to go in the rough areas…so we can’t call up the police stations and hear that it does not have vehicles or the vehicle don’t have gas”, Benn warned.
He called on the policemen to care for the vehicles and made the commitment that there will be a continuing training for policemen in the Region. He said that his Ministry is partnering with different countries and stakeholders to offer training. Benn said that with the new infrastructure he wants to see a significant reduction of crime in the region.
Acting Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken thanked the businessmen for the donations. Hicken said that the Guyana Police Force is quickly transforming and as such new and modern stations are being built to aid in the transformation. He said that with the improved infrastructure he is hoping to witness changes in the behaviour, attitudes and commitment from members of the police force.
Divisional Commander Shivpersaud Bacchus said that the facility and the vehicles will be regularly maintained and will help to fight crime in the division.
Onderneeming Sand Pit residents now have a police outpost. In recent months they had called for such after a number of crimes. The same is the case with the Lima Sands area. The new police outpost, is a retro-fitted 40-foot container. Several community-related issues were raised yesterday and decisions were made.
The Lima Sands outpost was established at a cost of $4.5M and will also provide security for communities such as Mainstay, Tapakuma and Red Lock.
The outpost was established after residents in the communities complained about an increase in crimes to President Ali during a recent cabinet outreach. Benn said the outpost will be equipped with adequate staff and vehicles to fight crimes in the region.
“Policing is everyone’s business we have access to information more than ever before, we are partnering with all the stakeholders… And so we can have intelligence coming from members of the public”, Hicken said.
He called on members of the public to report any unethical behaviour by policemen.
Home Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary, Mae Toussaint Jr. was also present at the events.
