– President Granger says public confidence essential in unit’s operation

PRESIDENT David Granger said necessary actions will be taken in relation to the damning audit findings into the operations of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU).

The President made this disclosure on Wednesday during an interview with the media at the Ministry of the Presidency’s Conference Room, following the swearing-in of two new members of the Public Utilities Commission.

“I have taken note and I agree with the Minister of Public Security that in the event that there have been any impropriety or misconduct, disciplinary actions can be taken,” the President said.

An audit of SOCU, which is a branch of the Guyana Police Force (GPF), was ordered by Police Commissioner, Leslie James, in February, following claims of grave mismanagement, which included the misuse of its operational fund.

“SOCU is an integral part and organic part of the Guyana Police Force and the head of SOCU is a police officer, and the Police Commissioner and the Minister of Public Safety presumably will take the necessary action to ensure that the unit continues to enjoy the confidence of the public,” the President noted.

Further, the President noted, “it is an organic part of the police force and it is not a free agent; it is not a loose cannon and we will ensure that the public confidence in SOCU is restored but it’s going to remain. It’s not going to be dismantled. It has work to do.”

Head of SOCU, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Sydney James, who has also been interviewed during the investigation so far, is still on the job. Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan, at a news conference last week, had hinted that a shake-up at SOCU was imminent. On Friday, Minister Ramjattan noted at an Alliance For Change (AFC) press conference that, “The commissioner is the head of SOCU as you know.

I have seen the report, it is not a very nice report and the commissioner has told me that he is going to take action. Operational matters a minister must not indulge in and that is an operational matter. “I am hoping that it will be action taken very early. Certainly [there] will have to be shifting around, probably some terminations too. I don’t know what his [commissioner] decision will be, but that is going to be the commissioner’s decision,” he added.

The audit has reportedly uncovered serious irregularities, including the falsification of records. The police commissioner had cause to summon the SOCU head to a meeting to discuss issues including mismanagement of operational funds at the agency, after it came under public scrutiny. This was after the firing of then adviser, Dr, Sam Sittlington, and the resignation of another senior official. According to an earlier report by this publication, the problems at SOCU have been long-standing, and it was reported that Sittlington had observed issues pertaining to mismanagement at the agency and those issues were raised with the head of SOCU.

It was also reported that Sittlington had encountered resistance at a very high level within SOCU when he first joined the agency, but given government’s determination to have the programme of the agency remain functional, such resistance had to be quelled. Among the more notable issues which recently made its way into the public domain, was the resignation of Sheronie James, the former deputy head of SOCU, who resigned amid concerns about her credentials. Ms. James was hired by SOCU on the basis of documentation she had reportedly presented, indicating that she was an ACCA affiliate; it was subsequently discovered that the certification she had proffered belonged to another person who lives in Ghana and who bears the same name.