Giving change a chance

Apr 30, 2024 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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Kaieteur News – About fifteen years ago, there was a plan to deploy one hundred traffic wardens across the city. A lot has changed since then, not only about the city but about the traffic situation in general.

The initiative for some inexplicable reason never got off the ground. Considering the persisting traffic chaos across the coastland at present, this initiative needs to be resuscitated.

But the deployment of 100 traffic wardens might just be scratching the surface of what’s needed. It’s time to seriously consider scaling up this initiative by employing approximately 500 traffic wardens to effectively manage the burgeoning traffic congestion and parking issues across the country.

These persons would need to undergo intense training by the Traffic Department. They would then have to be interned and work alongside traffic officers before they are eventually sent out on their own to manage the chaotic traffic situation.

The resuscitation of traffic wardens presents a unique opportunity to integrate more civilians into the Guyana Police Force, diversifying its workforce and optimizing its efficiency. By expanding the pool of traffic wardens, the authorities can alleviate the burden on existing police traffic ranks. At present these ranks are overwhelmed by the long hours they have to spend, exposed to the elements, directing the flow of traffic and busy intersections.

Integrating more civilians into traffic duties will send a wider signal that there is a demand for specialized roles within law enforcement. Not everyone has to become a trained police officer to function in the police force. Positions such as traffic wardens can see the employment of civilians without having to become part of the tenured employment within the Force.

At present, there is an outdated framework inherited from the colonial-era police force. This framework is characterized by stringent physical training, barracks life, and unquestioning obedience to commands. This approach to police administration is no longer attractive to potential recruits. There exists a pool of individuals eager to contribute to crime-solving and forensic analysis but are deterred by the regimented nature of traditional and formal police training.

By creating specialized roles such as crime investigators and forensic scientists within the police force, we can tap into this talent pool effectively. These positions don’t require the traditional drill-based training and can attract individuals who are otherwise deterred by the rigidity of police training schools.

There is an immense potential in outsourcing certain functions of the police force to private firms, such as training individuals in crime solving or offering scholarships to graduates in forensic science. This not only bridges the gap in specialized skill sets but also fosters collaboration between the private sector and law enforcement agencies for mutual benefit.

Additionally, the creation of a specialized immigration department, separate from the police force, can address the pressing need for multilingual officers to facilitate smoother immigration processes, particularly with the influx of individuals from Spanish-speaking countries? How many of our immigration officers are multilingual? How many of them can speak Spanish or French or Portuguese?

The President’s proposal to introduce compulsory Spanish language teaching in schools garnered attention. However, no one is certain how far this initiative has gone or if it has crash landed.

A more immediate and practical approach could have been the multilingual training of immigration officers.  Given the increasing diversity of visitors and immigrants to Guyana, proficiency in languages beyond English is invaluable for effective communication and service delivery at immigration checkpoints.

Therefore the proposal of traffic wardens can be just a tip of the iceberg when it comes to expanding civilian employment within the Guyana Police Force. To meet the evolving needs of law enforcement and adapt to changing labor market dynamics, it’s important for the Guyana Police Force to be more flexible in its approach to recruitment and deployment within the Guyana Police Force.

By expanding specialized the Guyana Police Force can enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement while providing diverse employment opportunities for the populace. And in so doing it can ensure that trained offers are deployed more towards fighting crime and less towards other tasks such as issuing licenses and immigration functions.

However, change has never been easy for law enforcement agencies to embrace. The transition towards integrating civilians into police work may face resistance.

Nevertheless, the recent consideration by the Force to change its name to Guyana Police Service signals a willingness to adapt and modernize. This shift in nomenclature reflects a broader ethos of service-oriented policing and a departure from traditional paramilitary connotations. Why not give change a chance!

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of this newspaper and its affiliates.)

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• congestion, General, reason, resuscitated, traffic

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