HEAD of the Police Impact Project, Deputy Superintendent Wayne De Haart, and ‘A’ Division Commander, Senior Superintendent Clifton Hicken, paid an impromptu visit to the Georgetown ward of Albouystown last Saturday, where they met with police officers patrolling the community and interacted with the young people of that ward.

The main focus of their visit was to get first-hand oversight of the landscaping works being carried out on a plot of land identified for construction and development of a multi-purpose sporting complex within the ward.

It was decided to build the facility after residents of the community indicated to the police top brass the need for proper recreational grounds and facilities within Albouystown, earlier in the year, upon the launching of the

Impact Albouystown Project.

On Saturday, machinery from the Ministry of Public Works was taken into the area to carry out landscaping of the land for the multi-purpose sporting complex. The police were given permission to use the land after they had written the authorities specifying what it was to be used for.

Thereafter, they approached the business community, and assistance of various forms has since been forthcoming in an effort to complete the facility.
One resident who spoke with this newspaper on Saturday deemed the police initiative a very impressive approach, but questioned the vigour and sustainability of the project in face of the police procedure of transferring ranks to its various departments and divisions. The resident said the ward realises
that Commander Hicken has adopted a hands-on approach with respect to operations of the Albouystown Impact Project, and he wondered if the commander were to ever be removed to another location anytime soon, what attitude his replacement would adopt in regard to operations of the Impact patrols.

Moreover, residents wonder whether a replacement for Hicken would be able to command the attention, respect and cooperation Hicken presently enjoys.
The Albouystown Impact Project Multi-purpose Sports Complex would be able to accommodate the playing of cricket, football, volleyball, tennis and basketball games.
The streets within the community are presently being used to stage the various recreational games since there are no properly maintained areas within the community that are designated to support the games.

This situation creates a problem for traffic traversing the Albouystown ward, since the flow is affected by the presence of young people and objects which are often used as wickets and goal posts by the players.

Although there is a basketball court in the community, residents requested another one be built to accommodate the main persons who have an interest in the sport, besides allowing for separation of juniors from seniors.

The Impact Albouystown Project was launched in the community by Acting Police Commissioner, Seelall Persaud, days after taking over the operations of the Guyana Police Force. Since the launch of the project, the community has been developing a more open relationship and approach to the police who are conducting several major activities within the community through the faith-based organizations there.

The programme first drew mixed reactions from the community, but today it seems to be gradually winning over the entire Albouystown community, and the business community has since bought into the project and has been pouring finance generously into the activities that would sustain the project.

The police will be adopting the model in several other communities. Already, they have earmarked the inner city community of Rosemary Lane, popularly referred to as ‘Tiger Bay.’

(By Leroy Smith)