Police pledge to provide safe environment for Guyana leg of World 20/20 Cricket

Feb 14, 2010 News

– as Annual Officers’ Conference ends on a high

Policing the Guyana leg of this year’s ICC World 20/20 Cricket Competition was among the main topics for discussion at the just concluded Annual Police Officers’ Conference.
According to a document produced at the end of the three-day event that was attended by 146 officers, the conference took cognizance that the World 20/20 Cricket Competition, during which several matches will be held here during April/May of this year, will be a major event.

From right: Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee, Police Commissioner Henry Greene and Chief-of-Staff Gary Best during a discussion at the Police Officers’ Annual Conference last Thursday.

The discussions were focused on enabling the officers to better understand and plan for the complexities that will have to be taken into account in policing the competition and in ensuring that it is conducted in a stable environment.
Local Government Elections, which are scheduled to be held later this year, were also discussed with Divisional Commanders.
The conference which was held under the theme, “Providing Effective Security through improved Police-Community Relations”, was declared open by President Bharrat Jagdeo last Thursday.
Issues raised by President Jagdeo in his address at the opening of the Conference and those raised in subsequent addresses by Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee and Commissioner of Police, Henry Greene, were focal in the deliberations during the Conference.
The officers were encouraged and motivated by President Jagdeo’s public commendation and recognition of the performance of the Guyana Police Force and its leadership in the carrying out of its mandate.
The President had stated, “I want to say thank you to the officers, the leadership of the Police Force, for the work you have done …….it is important that people know that with less resources, because you have less resources than many of your counterparts in the Caribbean, you have done a better job than most of them”.
The President had also pledged to ensure that the Police Force continues to have the full financial, legislative and institutional support of the government, in order to upgrade its crime-fighting capability, and the Officers welcomed the plan to have legislation on cyber-crime and the putting in place of time-limits for decision making in court matters.
The creation of roving teams to patrol border and interior locations, including Aranka and Aranapai was among the other issues discussed, following numerous reports of armed robberies coming out of these mining dominated areas.
A decision was also taken to reinvigorate the training of ranks in the Spanish and Portuguese languages, especially those attached to border locations and the Immigration Department.
Significant deliberations were held on the training of police ranks in order to develop their knowledge, skill and ability aimed at enhancing service delivery.

Focal in the discussions were the training being provided between October 2009 and August 2010 by The Emergence Group under the Citizens Security Programme, as well as the computerisation of police stations in order to access the operational benefits to be derived from the Integrated Crime Information System (ICIS) and the Crime Observatory, which are intended to create an enabling environment wherein comprehensive, up-to-date crime related information is readily available.
Commissioner Greene had addressed officers on the successes achieved by the Force during 2009 despite the challenges faced.
He stressed that the Guyana Police Force has done its work in keeping with its mandate.
He said that while there is evidence that some ranks continue to neglect their duty, the overwhelming majority are giving yeomen service in maintaining the fight to keep the lid on crime, including drugs, and traffic enforcement.
The decentralising of sniffer dogs in all the Police Divisions was also among the main decisions taken at the just concluded annual conference.
Other decisions include maintaining marine patrols among ‘D’ ‘E & F’ and ‘G’ Divisions in the Waini River and maintaining backlands patrols on the East Coast of Demerara, West Demerara and Berbice.
A steering committee was established to oversee the formation of a Policewomen’s Association in the Guyana Police Force.
This was prompted consequent upon female ranks of the Force attending three conferences of Policewomen in the Caribbean.
A second boat was sent to ‘B’ Division to increase patrols and attend to reports along the Canje River, Corentyne Coast and Berbice River.
The officers also focused on the Police response capability to scenes of crime. There was also focus on crime reduction and traffic management, policing of the interior with emphasis on the Guyana/Brazil Bridge, the construction of a new forensic laboratory and police reform under the Citizens Security Programme (CSP).
Police misconduct and corruption were again part of the agenda.
This years’ Conference concluded with the traditional Mess Dinner at the Police Officers’ Mess where eight officers with an accumulated total of 263 years of service were dined out and 17 newly promoted officers were dined in.