THE Guyana Police Force (GPF) yesterday reported on its second Inspectors and Sergeants Conference held Monday January 18, 2010, at the Officers’ Mess Annexe, Eve Leary, Georgetown.

The report said a total of 167 Inspectors and Sergeants, from all divisions and branches attended under the theme ‘Promoting Effective Middle Management through Participation and Professional Development’. The release said concerns and issues were raised by Minister of Home Affairs and then Acting President, Mr. Clement Rohee and Commissioner of Police Mr. Henry Greene.

The release said the conference was heartened by Rohee’s opening statement in which he commended members of the Force on their overall performance in managing crime during 2009.

He said that was reasonable, as the Force was able to reduce serious crimes by nine per cent and he emphasised that the conference participants are at the middle management level and have critical role in the managing of Police stations.

The release said Rohee expressed serious concern over a number of issues that affect the proper management of Police stations and identified them as including the unsatisfactory response to reports of domestic violence, numerous complaints against members of the Force, allegations of corruption, the need for better Police/community relations, careless use of Police facilities, response to reports of serious crimes, the need for better financial accountability, mistreatment of prisoners, improved relations between the Police and Community Policing Groups and more vibrant leadership from the Inspectors and Sergeants.

Focus
The release said Rohee called on the GPF) to, during this year, place more focus on the further reduction of crime, road accidents, promotion of community policing in communities and the expansion of the Neighbourhood Policing Programme.

It said, while pledging the support of the Government in the reforming of the GPF, through the Citizens Security Programme and the Security Sector Reform Programme, Rohee urged ranks to enhance their professional delivery of service to the public, by having greater visibility in the communities, improving response time to reports, greater focus on public order preparedness, better attitude towards the handling of domestic violence reports and reduction of allegations of improper conduct against ranks.

The statement said, Greene in his address, emphasised that the main reason for the conference was to promote an effective middle management within the GPF, as they are the linking pin within the organisation and urged that they understand their role and set the example for their juniors.

He called on them to guide their subordinates in a professional manner and take personal interest in their development.

Towards this achievement, the Commissioner placed emphasis on the need for stregthening the middle management corps and the imposition of discipline among ranks, along with the resurgence of weekly instruction classes at stations, during which ranks engage in theoretical and practical learning sessions, the statement said.

It said Greene also challenged the ranks in attendance to participate, meaningfully, in a manner which would tend to identify them for leadership positions within the organisation.

Presentations
Several group presentations were done by Inspectors and Sergeants and key issues and concerns were outlined and addressed, among them crime overview,

transportation, security at stations, training, border security, communications, traffic management, prosecution in the courts, community policing, neighbourhood policing, the Force Benevolent Fund, insurance coverage for ranks, qualifying examinations for promotion and refurbishing of pounds

The conference recorded its appreciation to Acting Deputy Commissioner, Operations, Mr. Paul Slowe, for his presentation on Disciplinary Inquiry of Officers and Inspectors and, at the conclusion, the Inspectors and Sergeants attended a social function at the Police Officers’ Mess, where Rohee and Greene were also in attendance, together with senior officers of the GPF management team.

The statement said, during the function, interesting discussions continued on the various topics deliberated on at the conference.