AS the Guyana Government continues to fight crime, there is need for more manpower in the disciplined forces, according to Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, who noted that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is short of 2000 persons.Minister Ramjattan made the revelation on Friday, while addressing executives of the Community Policing Groups (CPGs) at the Ministry of Public Security. He iterated that while the GPF has approximately 4,500 persons, it was still 2000 short of its maximum capacity.

“We have been working hard to ensure that there is maximum capacity in the Force, but due to varying constraints, such as persons complaining of low salaries and so forth, we have been unable to do so,” he said.

He emphasised that the Force would be working hard to recruit more persons.

Speaking recently at the accreditation of Kuwait’s non-resident Ambassador to Guyana, President David Granger had said, “There is still a lot of work to be done as Guyana begins to win the war on crime.”

He had also expressed his pleasure at the progress of the GPF. “There are several measures. One of the most important things that are not visible to the naked eye is that our CID [Criminal Investigation Department] has been strengthened. Though we may not be able to prevent crimes from occurring in all those cases, we could detect those crimes and bring those people to justice very quickly. That has been one of the achievements of the Police Force over recent months,” the President said.

Minister Ramjattan is calling on persons to get on board — join the GPF and play a part in protecting citizens of the country.