THE number two highest ranking female officer in the Guyana Police Force yesterday assumed the position of deputy commander of the largest police division.Appointed to act as the Deputy Commander of ‘A’ Division is substantial ‘A’ Division Court Superintendent Desiree Fowler who would act in the position until the return of the division’s No. 2 IC, Superintendent Dion Moore.
Speaking with ‘A’ Division Commander Clifton Hicken yesterday afternoon, he told the Guyana Chronicle that the move shows that the Guyana Police Force is not an organization that believes only men are capable of being on the frontline.
He also noted that her temporary appointment is not the only case where females serving in the force were asked to function in key positions.
According to Hicken, there were females who have served as Divisional Commanders and also headed the Immigration Department.
At present the highest ranking female in the Guyana Police Force, Superintendent Maxine Graham, heads the Police Force Staff Office Administration.
That office is responsible for assigning and transferring ranks around the country. It is also Graham who has overall responsibility for the work that the organization has been doing with communities countrywide.
The Guyana Chronicle caught up with Superintendent Desiree Fowler at her desk yesterday and she said that she was humbled to be asked to serve the division at the second highest level.
She explained that the operations of the office will be nothing new from when its substantial office holder sat in the seat except in this case the genders are different.
Fowler served the Guyana Police Force in many capacities but was mostly recognized for her work as a police prosecutor, performing in some of the most high profile cases that went to the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
Fowler who also has been working with children over the years also served as the Officer-in-Charge of the Police Holding Centre where juveniles are held from time to time.
By Leroy Smith