Dear Editor,
WITH reference to “Berbice women to face charges over assault to Police Officer and other incidents”, News Source, December 05, 2019.

This is an ugly case of brattish behaviour, perhaps premised by possession of wealth, which is known to foster an unfortunate misunderstanding of the world, its requirements for civility as human beings, and a recklessness of conduct that often clashes with law and order, as seems to be the case from the incident reported in News Source. It is a category of sub-social behaviour that exists.

The fact that both Ramsook sisters ended up at their district police station should therefore come as no surprise. It was inevitable that their loutish behaviour would have caused such.
It was even more disturbing that their out-of-control and boorish behaviour could have continued, even within the precincts of a citadel, representative of the Law, attracting a caution from an on-duty police officer, who proceeded to be assaulted, inclusive also of being threatened with dismissal. Thank God that that office remained at the highest professional level in dealing with such high-voltage disrespect for the law, coupled with the provocation and indignity suffered. She must be commended.

But it is the resort to racial slurs, no less worrying than the other issues arising out of the irresponsible and disagreeable conduct of the two young women that must be noted. These two women, and others of similar disposition, must know that those officers of the Guyana Police Force (GPF), men and women, are there to protect and serve the citizens of this nation. And they execute this mandate, in different forms, whether as beat-duty patrol, or being placed at police stations, where it is their duty to receive complaints from the public, as well as investigating such instances when detained citizens are brought in for whatever reason/cause, to whichever precinct.

It is further reminded that these functions are carried out by thousands of enlisted men and women, who are representative of the nation’s ethnic pool, and are mandated to do so in an entirely professional manner. This uncompromising principle has been the masthead of the President Granger–led APNU+AFC administration, and its gradual implementation as a component of the Security Sector Reform Programme, has been bearing gradual fruit in an evolving new-look Guyana Police Force.

The Ramsooks et al must again be reminded that it is those same officers who carry out their duties for, and on behalf of, law and order, protecting all citizens, irrespective of ethnicity or race; and in the same vein they would have to deal with alleged infringers of the law, inclusive of their type allegedly unlawful conduct.

Editor, given the deeply polarised society that we have become, it is not difficult to discern the devious insertion of the race card as a definite preparatory means for getting themselves out of the alleged serious traffic violations which these two sisters face, and which would have attracted the usual partisan political accusations from the political opposition. It is the easiest card to play. And I say this without fear or favour, since there is a track record of criticisms levelled against the GPF in that very region whenever they have matters from a certain ethnicity to investigate and seek to enforce the law.

And this is not forgetting the unheard of, unbelievable comments, not surprising, that emanated from a former senior PPP/C minister in the aftermath of the Berbice Police Division confronting and killing three well-known dangerous criminals, whose several attacks on the Berbice community paralysed citizens with fear. How could the police have been accused of wasting resources for eliminating three terrorist bandits can only come from highly mischievous politicians. But thank God for the cameras.

Thank God again; the truth as to the current reported incidents that took place within that police station is there for scrutiny. But the well-known hypocrites will still find some disingenuous reason(s) to criticise and condemn the GPF.

Regards,
Carla Mendonca