The population’s disrespect for the police is at the lowest in the country’s history

Jun 22, 2011 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

I lived under the reign of the PNC from the domination of President Burnham to the attempts at democratic resuscitation under President Desmond Hoyte. At no time since Independence has the citizens’ lack of confidence in and their supportive attitude for the police been as low as it is today.
Even in the period of breakdown between 1981 to the death of Mr. Burnham in August 1985, has the contempt and disdain for the police by the citizenry ever become as dismal as to what it is now.
Mr. Burnham had one overarching instinct – power must be absolute. Unless that absolute power was threatened by his antagonists, Mr. Burnham ran a system that recognized the right of lower authorities to discipline erring employees and Burnham did not accept that his influential underlings should enjoy the right to do what they wanted with state institutions.
If you ran over a civilian on the road while you were drunk, it was not a political matter for Burnham. With a cynical grin and in his inimitable way, he would have quoted a Latin phrase to mean, “Let the law take its course.”
I am not going to live in this country and fool the younger generation that President Burnham was the worst leader this country produced. He was not. I have no reason to admire Forbes Burnham. He took a personal interest in harassing and discriminating against me, but when it came to nationalist principles and certain philosophical values, Mr. Burnham towers above the present PPP leaders, without exception.
I could be subjective and nasty and condemn everything about Burnham for personal reasons – he didn’t like me, he hurt me, therefore I will forever condemn him as the worst thing to happen to Guyana.
My academic training and my conscience would not allow me to descend to that unphilosophical level. Burnham was concerned about the essential well-being of the poorer classes and would not have allowed for their economic humiliation as we see in Guyana today.
He was a nationalist to the extent that he would not have allowed the profane exploitation of state resources by the super rich, as all Guyanese are witnessing at the present moment
Everyone I interview from the Burnham era have told me that whatever were his faults, Burnham had the respect of state authorities, bureaucratic officials and those possessed of lesser power.
The Guyana Police Force did not descend to the level of mediocrity, self-humiliation and disrespect that we see in this country today. It is my honest opinion that Guyanese view the police force as an unprofessional body, led by politically abusive politicians, doing unsavoury things for those politicians.
Above all of this, they see the police force as an organization willing to engage in the flagrant abuse of citizens’ rights at the behest of power-drunk politicians.
I put forward my sincere belief that the image and credibility of the police force is extremely shaky at the moment and there was never a time in our history when it has been in this precarious state.
I speak to police officials all the time, some of whom are good human beings, and they are resigned to what their organization has become. And it is getting worse.
Some episodes are extremely worrying. I have belaboured the nauseating deplorability of the police in my case, where Mark Benschop and I spent three days and two nights in the Brickdam lock-up on an inconsequential traffic offence. I have written extensively about Mr. Maniram and the attempts to confiscate his Canter-truck.
I did the same in the Mark Benschop-Kwame Mc Coy incident. To this date, there is no movement in the traffic incident involving Mr. Kellawan Lall.
A marshal of the High Court complained to the police that Mr. Carvil Duncan tried to run him down along with the chauffeur of the Opposition Leader, and the investigation came to an abrupt end.
Maybe some of us in the media should disguise and go to a police station and tell the desk officer that Freddie Kissoon or Mark Benschop or Peter Ramsaroop or Tacuma Ogunseye or Khemraj Ramjattan or Christopher Ram tried to run down an individual with his vehicle. You will see how quick the Black Clothes guys will visit our homes.
I planned such a game, but I know they will recognize me. But it is a pursuit that some of us in the media should try just to show Guyanese what a mess the Guyana Police Force is in.

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The population’s disrespect for the police is at the lowest in the country’s history

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