CHIEF Constable, Andrew Foo told the statutory meeting of the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC), on Monday, that the Constabulary is, currently, so constrained that it is unable to carry out its mandate to the citizens. He had been called upon, at the City Hall meeting; to explain what he thought would be the impact on the municipality if it did not hire a private security firm.
The possibility of the M&CC hiring such services was met with heavy criticism by some councillors, who argued that this was not possible due to the Council’s current cash-strapped situation.
Councillor Junior Garret, who chairs the Finance Committee, pointed out that the municipality would not be able to afford such services as it already owes money to a similar entity.
Mayor Hamilton Green agreed that the Constabulary is not equipped and is not carrying out its mandate to Georgetown citizenry.
Councillor Ranwell Jordan declared that, because the officers in the Force are tasked with looking after Council’s buildings, important policing work falls in jeopardy.
However, Councillor Devi Ross maintained that officers are present at various locations but, often, turn a blind eye to offences being committed. She said, even if the number of officers is increased, the situation will remain the same.
Foo had told the Guyana Chronicle, last month that the grim situtation with regard to staff shortage and weakened training that presently exists in his department is likely to continue for this year.
There are 160 officers at the Constabulary, whereas 314 were budgeted for and the last recruitment was done in 2010.
According to Foo, another issue has to do with a shortage of men on the job. Most persons applying are women and, unlike the Guyana Police Force (GPF), the Constabulary does not have accommodation for persons living outside of the City.
“We need to be more aggressive and proactive. We need to be a bit more creative,” he said while addressing the issue of what can be done to attract more persons.
Foo also said that training has been weakened by the retirement and death of some of the more experienced officers. He suggested that, in order to attract more persons, schools may have to be targeted in an effort to identify the positives of the employment.