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Mr. Slowe not only stood up to the authorities, he stood tall and made us proud

Jun 04, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
On reading the news story, “Slowe delivers fiery farewell speech,” (Kaieteur News, June 2), I have to admit I became teary eyed at one point. I don’t know Mr. Paul Slowe, Assistant Police Commissioner who is retiring after 37 years of service to the force, but I have read quite a bit about him, especially in the last decade.
Mr. Slowe claimed that although he did a lot of wicked things in his younger days, corruption was not one of them. “Having served for almost 37 years, there is not a single person in this country or in the world who can point their finger at me and say that I was involved in any corruption. I never asked anybody for any bribe.” It really takes great courage and confidence to say this, because it is not so much a boast as much as it is a powerful testimony for a senior police officer in a country where cops and politicians are more corrupt than ever before, thanks to a political culture that openly facilitates corruption.
Unlike two of his former bosses (Messrs. Henry Greene and Floyd McDonald), who had their foreign visas revoked, Mr. Slowe can afford to talk about possible job offers overseas, maybe because he stood tall when others caved and bowed. Given the vindictive nature of this government, however, I caution him to tread cautiously.
There’s nothing more this government would like than to ensnare and smear people with whom it disagrees.
But I also liked the part where he stood up to former Home Affairs Minister, Mr. Ronald Gajraj, by refusing to comply with the Minister’s orders for him to return a gun to a criminal suspect.
They say if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything, and Mr. Slowe not only stood up to the powers that be; he stood tall and made us all proud.
For refusing to comply with the order, the Minister then ordered that he return to Georgetown to a non-existent job in the Finance Ministry.
That’s how powerful Mr. Gajraj had become, yet the President knew nothing about Roger Khan and any Phantom Squad operation.
Obviously, had Mr. Slowe obeyed and taken that job, he would have been eventually fired without benefits.
On reading that aspect of his revealing remarks, and that he could always sleep peacefully at night, I have to wonder aloud how Mr. Gajraj is sleeping at night. In fact, how do many of the people who hold leadership positions in the Jagdeo government sleep at night? Not that every person at leadership levels aren’t sleeping comfortably, but those that aren’t ought to know themselves.
Editor, beside whatever former GDF Major David Clarke has to share in any book on what he knows relative to Roger Khan and the Phantom Squad, as well as the so-called Freedom Fighters, I look forward to a more detailed reading on Mr. Slowe’s life in the police force, but especially in the last 15 years.
Truly, it’s hard to imagine that the amount of stuff that happened during the Jagdeo presidency alone outweighs everything else that happened under the Forbes Burnham, Desmond Hoyte and Cheddi Jagan presidencies combined.
To Mr. Slowe, I say thanks and congratulations on your retirement. Since you are still relatively young, I hope you come out of retirement after a well-deserved rest and consider serving in some other capacity on Guyana’s behalf, even not under this corrupt government.
Emile Mervin

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