ASSISTANT Commissioner of Police Clifton Hicken said Tuesday that his division is adopting an approach in dealing with the young people in the various communities that would “teach them to catch fish rather than feeding them”.Hicken acknowledged that initiatives taken while working with the youth groups last year and earlier this year were successful, but there were several things which could have been done better and those things will be fixed.
In an interview with this newspaper, Hicken pointed out that in discussions with the parents and guardians in the communities of Tiger Bay and Leopold Street, it was noted that they had different ways that they wanted the police to engage them.
That new approach is one where the police would not only focus on the children but also their parents and guardians.
According to Hicken, the young people will now be engaged by stakeholders who will be providing them with resources for their community-related activities while jobs will be secured for the parents who are unemployed.
The police will also be looking to engage the Ministry of Social Protection to follow-up on aspects of the request made by the parents.
Additionally, with the new approach the Station Sergeants at each police station will reach out to youth groups in the area which come under the span of their respective police stations.
Since the Guyana Police Force embarked on its Social Crime Prevention Programmes, there has been a reported reduction in several kinds of crimes, especially those which were committed in communities by residents or by strangers on community members.
In discussion with community leaders and residents of Tiger Bay on Tuesday, Commander Hicken reminded them that the police were opening its ZARA Computer facility to them so that the children can receive foundation courses in Information Technology.
On Saturday the children will be provided with transportation by the police and they will be transported to the computer room of the ZARA centre at the Police Training College where they will engage in computer studies.
Both groups have been warned not to encourage persons from outside of their communities to enter and create mischief since the police will be forced to act.
In this light, residents of Tiger Bay requested a police presence like the one existing in Albouystown but the senior police officer pointed out that while the police can have a presence in the community, it cannot be at the level existing in Albouystown.
He noted that based on the crime pattern and the kind of offences in the community, the level of security in Albouystown is not necessary for Tiger Bay at this time. (Leroy Smith)