…installations underway across city

INSTALLATION of the much touted Closed Circuit Television CCTV) has begun across the capital city as government moves to shore up its anti-crime posture in the face of a spike in streets crimes.

CCTV is a TV system in which signals are not publicly distributed but are monitored, primarily for surveillance and security purposes. It relies on strategic placement of cameras, and observation of the camera’s input on monitors somewhere. Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan recently told an audience in Toronto, Canada that as part of the administration’s overall fight against rampant gun crimes 300 television monitors covering cameras on every street in the capital city will be installed. Guyana Chronicle on Tuesday observed that the installation of the cameras has commenced along Avenue of the Republic.

Ramjattan had acknowledged that the crime situation needs to be taken seriously, pointing out that it is obviously a Herculean task, but vowed that the APNU+AFC coalition government will be the Hercules in surmounting it.

He had said too that a decision will be made shortly as to where the command centre will be located. However, up to Tuesday this newspaper was unable to verify if the centre has been set up and where it is located.
Ramjattan has described the initiative as a huge development since 66 per cent of the crimes in Guyana are committed in Georgetown. Financing for the project is being sourced under the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Citizen Security Programme II, which aims at improving the operational efficiency of the Guyana Police Force, with regards to reducing the levels of crime, violence and insecurity.
Monies that are going to be disbursed for the command centre and other supportive measures, amount to some US$2.5 million. In addition to the establishment and management of the centre, funds will also go towards the CCTV feeds.
“We are going to have many cameras all around the city streets and a command centre that would see what is happening,” Minister Ramjattan had said.
According to Ramjattan, the centre will have many mounted television cameras that could be used to trace incidents and to link these with ambulances, fire service and police service responses. “On that screen you will actually know where a police car is and if there is a robbery you will divert immediately the closest patrol vehicle to the scene of the crime and as well call 911 or the fire service,” the minister explained. Government has allocated $21 billion to strengthen and improve national security services. Of that amount, a sum of $11.9 billion will support the operations of the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Prison Service, Guyana Fire Service and the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) while $9.1 billion has been budgeted for the Guyana Defence Force.

DECENTRALISATION
These allocations will be used to improve the physical infrastructure, upgrade the security fleet, acquire tools and equipment, and upgrade the security features of the machine readable passports. With respect to the decentralisation of the application and issuance of passports, a sum of $9.7 million has been budgeted for the acquisition of specialised equipment for the production of machine readable passports.