THE ruling party yesterday congratulated the Commissioner and ranks of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) on their 175th Anniversary.

And General-Secretary and Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee, noted that the positives and negatives that mark the Force’s operations must be considered together, rather than spotlighting the negatives as a complete reflection of the Force’s entire operations.
At the party’s press conference at Freedom House, Robb Street, he said, “The Force’s celebration comes at a time when there is major on-going reforms to ensure modern-day policing is incorporated into its activities. The PPP/C Administration has initiated these reforms with the hope that law enforcement is better able to serve citizens.”
According to him, over the last two decades, the Guyana Police Force has benefited from increased resources provided by the Government of Guyana enabling ranks to be better equipped to fight crime.
On that note, he gave assurance of the Government’s continued support for the Force.
“The PPP wishes to make clear that it will continue to support Government’s efforts of ensuring that adequate resources are provided to the law enforcement agencies, so they can effectively execute their functions to protect the citizens of our country,” Rohee said.

COMMUNITY TIES
The General-Secretary noted that the Guyana Police Force has come a long way over the past 175 years and has made strides in heightened collaborations with communities across the country.
He said, “We are most encouraged by efforts of ‘A’ Division (Georgetown) Commander and his officers as regards the work they have been doing in the Albouystown, Agricola and Tiger Bay areas.
“We are extremely happy at the photo splashes in some sections of the media which show for example the Guyana Police Force Weekly Luncheon at the Agricola School and its collaboration with a corporate entity to mount street signs in Albouystown, under the Force’s Impact Albouystown project.
“We see the youths of our country as extremely important to our future and welcome any initiative which seeks to keep them on the right track. We are encouraged at these initiatives taken by the Force to work with young people, which we firmly believe will have a significant impact on the present and our future generations.”
Rohee also commended the ‘B’ Division (Berbice) Commander and the ranks under his charge in that area, for the launch of the Fort Ordinance Youth Group, which was established by the Guyana Police Force ‘B’ Division and the Development Association of Fort Ordinance (DAFO).

PARTNERSHIPS
He said, “We salute Commanders, other senior officers and ranks at all police divisions who have been working quietly to foster better relationships with the residents of their respective divisions. These are all welcoming signs and show that with partnership anything is possible.”
The General-Secretary stressed that closer ties with communities constitute a move in the right direction, as it will foster a better police/civilian working relationship and by extension, strengthening the community’s confidence in the force.
“It is our firm views that for far too long law enforcement and the communities were miles apart, resulting in many controversies between the two sides. We salute this approach taken by at least three recent Commissioners of Police to bring citizens closer to the organisation. The PPP wishes to reiterate its position that working closely with communities is one of the most effective ways in stemming crime, especially at the community level. We have seen over the years, the huge impact community policing has had on crime fighting,” he said.
On that note, Rohee called on the Force and citizens to continue to work in this harmonious manner, since such partnerships can only result in a win-win for all involved.
The General-Secretary concluded that he and the party is cognisant of the need for more to be done, but made it clear that that there have been laudable successes in the last years.

(By Vanessa Narine)