WHEN Commander of the police ‘A’ Division, Assistant Commissioner Clifton Hicken, issued an invitation to members of the public to call him directly on telephone numbers +592 699 0871 or +592 622 6592, if they believe that they have sensitive information pertaining to illegal activities they are not comfortable sharing with junior police ranks, it sent a reassuring message to the populace that maybe – just maybe, the police are moving in the right direction toward building trust between themselves and the public.According to a report in this publication, the divisional commander made the appeal during an interview with the Guyana Chronicle a few days ago, when he pointed out that since the police have been engaging members of the public at the higher level, the organisation has been able to make headway with some very serious and high-profile cases when information was passed on by civilians.
According to Hicken, the force noticed that recently it has been able to confiscate high-powered weapons and arrest high-profile criminals without the use of force; and in some cases, without the exchange of gunfire. He credited this to the intelligence often received from persons who see the need to make their communities safe and free of persons of devious character.
Hicken divulged to the reporter, “We have been able to seize firearms and in large quantities and high-powered ones while having confrontation with members of the public with very minimal force compared to long ago; and that is because we have been getting intelligence and we have been empowered.”
The fractured relations between members of the public, who have grown increasingly disillusioned and wary of police ranks, so much so that many incidents of crime go unreported because of the customary slow or altogether lack of police response; or even worse, the justifiable suspicion that some ranks are complicit in some criminal forays has been a festering sore in the socio-psychological dynamics of the nation.
Many police ranks have been accused of not only being lax in their response to reports of criminal activity, but also of ineffectual action when they eventually condescend to address the complaint.
Courtesy or the lack thereof, is another factor that has made decent citizens shun the law enforcement body, which has developed a reputation converse to its mandate guaranteeing service and protection to law-abiding citizens of the land.
The fear of complicity between criminal gangs and police ranks has often deterred those willing to provide police with information that could possibly solve outstanding or cold cases; so Hicken’s reassurance to members of the public who may have valuable information on criminal activity may further enhance the crime-fighting abilities of the police.
The ‘A’ Division Commander is also guaranteeing that the force, especially ‘A’ Division, is weeding out those ranks who have been acting outside the standard operating procedures and bringing the force into disrepute. This is no small thing, because rogue cops have been the bane of law-enforcement in the country and have mostly contributed to the ethos of deep distrust in the police force.
One of the main excuses for untimely or non-responses by police ranks is the lack of mobility, when police vehicles are seen all over the country engaged in activities not related to police work, so the information that, last Saturday, the division had held a meeting with all drivers who are entrusted vehicles of the state that are being used by the Guyana Police Force ‘A’ Division on how they execute their duties is another welcome initiative.
Adherence to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) is a prerequisite to effective and efficient police work, and the dereliction of ranks from these procedures has oftentimes stymied and brought into disrepute the work and reputation of the force, so it is envisaged that this pro-active approach by the administrative construct of the law-enforcement body would, over time, restore the professionalism and consequently the efficiency of the Guyana Police Force.