MINISTER of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn, on Thursday, urged indigenous leaders to encourage the youths within their respective communities to join the joint services.
He issued this call during his address at the National Toshao’s Conference, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, where he also emphasised the need for a wider representation of Amerindians in the armed forces.

Benn said that he wanted young indigenous people and others who are sometimes underrepresented, to join the forces.
“It is our belief, even while we talk about increasing the peace in Guyana, a fundamental plank of that is to have a balancing of our forces,” he said.

He added that Amerindian leaders also have a significant role to play in securing their communities and supporting the national interest in terms of security.
Minister Benn indicated that he would like to see a “rush” for these persons to join the forces, whether it be the Guyana Police Force, Guyana Defence Force, or the Guyana Prison Service.

“We want representative participation in those forces,” Benn stressed.
To this end, he remarked that if Guyana was going to be more wholesome as a country and if we are to be able to protect each other, Guyanese must move to a position of empathy, have respect for each other, and be embedded in each other’s culture.

He said: “We want to move the ball forward in respect of this issue. We want to encourage you to join up, we want you not to be intimated in respect of this matter, we want you to find a welcoming environment in those forces.”

Additionally, the Home Affairs Minister stated that since entering office, there has been an increase in Community Policing Groups (CPG) which had gone dormant for quite some time.
These groups, he said were being renewed as there was ongoing training in various areas across the country, which he said he hoped would serve as a vehicle for upward movement in the disciplined services.