Dear Editor,
I RECENTLY read with great pleasure an article in the press under the caption, “Office of Professional Responsibility to actively monitor Police performance”. The article stated that the Guyana Police Force’s (OPR) is undertaking a programme to tackle the main complaints and issues prevalent in each department.

During an exclusive interview, Commissioner of Police Leslie James described it as a “thinkingoutsideof the box initiative.” According to the Department of Public Information (DPI ), the plan will help to better ascertain what are the issues affecting residents and, by extension, what the OPR needs to address urgently within the various communities, the Commissioner said.

The initiative is a quantum leap in the right direction. It should be encouraged at all levels. I cannot wait for it to be designed, developed, implemented and evaluated. In a previous letter to the editor, I posited that rather than the police depending heavily on crime rates, number of arrests and case clearance rates to measure how the police are doing, they should conduct Citizen Surveys to find out whether or not they are achieving their mandate as set out under the Police Act Chapter 16:01, and what society expects of its protectors. According to Bennett and Hess (2000), using those measures mentioned above have several problems: Low crime rates do not necessarily mean a police agency is efficient and effective; a high arrest rate does not necessarily show that the police are doing a good job; high ratio of police officers to citizens does not necessarily mean high-quality police service; responding quickly to calls for service does not necessarily indicate a police agency is efficient.

In addition, the possibility of ghosting, falsifying patrol logs to “make the numbers come out right” may occur. I can recall years ago one senior officer ordering his junior to “Cock the ‘stats’ so that we can look good.”

There is also the ‘dark figures in crime”, that is, crimes not reported to the police due to diverse reasons. Kramer and Fiedler (2002) explain that traditional measurements such as uniform crime reports, arrest and tickets tabs, list only events; they do not measure whether or not activities were completed effectively or efficiently, and they do not describe what impact the activities had on the community. The researchers concluded that rather than looking at crime rates, number of arrest and response time, evaluations should assess whether or not the agency is effective in fulfilling its responsibilities to the community, and that managers must focus on their mission statement; they must consider what citizens want and expect from their protectors. Most citizens want to live in safe and orderly communities. The police are considered effective when they produce the perception that crime is under control. Reducing the fear of crime is a very important measure.
Here is the mission statement of the Guyana Police Force: “The mission of the Guyana Police Force and it auxillaries is to serve all citizens and communities of Guyana in a professional, proactive and accountable manner. To achieve this, we will work in partnership with communities, public agencies and private bodies to enhance and support an environment where all people are preventing crime and building a safer and secure Guyana.

“Mission statements/objectives must be specific; measurable, achievable, realistic and timely (SMART). All people cannot be involved in preventing crime and building a safer and secure Guyana. It is not realistic; it is not achievable; it cannot happen. It is Utopian.
One way of assessing citizens’ approval or disapproval is through citizen surveys, which can measure trends and provide positive and negative feedback on the public’s impression on law enforcement. Community surveys like the one proposed by the Commissioner are often win-win situations;citizens are better served and officers receive positive feedback. It can be a key in establishing effective communication. Apart from the OPR, the police can utilise some of their many university graduates, including those with master’s degrees, to do citizen surveys. Surveys conducted by independent groups can be very instructive. The use of the Internet can also be a useful tool to conduct surveys.

How do we know when our police are winning or losing the fight against crime, the fear of crime and traffic lawlessness on our roads? Citizens approval or disapproval is generally reflected in letters of criticism or commendation, editorials, support for a police-proposed programme, letters to the editor, public reaction to a single police-citizen incident, response to police initiated surveys, or cooperation with incidents being reported.

Regards,
Clinton Conway