Calls grow for Hicken to go

May 02, 2025 News

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…Opposition parties say GPF needs complete overhaul

Kaieteur News-  Several Opposition parties on Wednesday called for the immediate removal of the Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken, pending the outcome of the investigation into the death of 11-year-old Adriana Younge.

Noting it is not a political alliance but rather a united stand for national peace, justice, and transformation, Leaders from the Alliance For Change (AFC), the Assembly For Liberty & Prosperity Party (ALP), Vigilent For a New Guyana (V-PAC), The People’s Movement and sitting Members of Parliament from the People’s National Congress (PNC) hosted a press briefing on Wednesday in the vicinity of the Double Day International Hotel at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) where they made this call.

The group highlighted the failures of the government and the Guyana Police Force (GPF), particularly in the Adriana Younge case.

Businessman and member of the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) Investment Committee, Dr. Terrence Campbell, who read the joint statement, said the unrest following Adriana’s death is not just about one tragic loss; it is about a deeper, ongoing injustice.

“It is about a system that treats poor and working-class youth as disposable,” he said.

With that being said, the joint political parties are calling for an impartial investigation into Adriana’s death to be led, managed, and conducted by a credible international law enforcement agency- Scotland Yard, RCMP, or the FBI, with the appropriate forensic capacity under the constitutional auspices of the GPF.

Notably, he said they are calling for “The immediate removal of the Commissioner of Police pending the outcome of investigations (and) the establishment of an Independent Civilian Oversight Authority to review and investigate allegations of misconduct within the Guyana Police Force.”

When asked about their calls for an independent investigation and the removal of the top cop, AFC Leader, Nigel Hughes explained that there is a lack of confidence in the ability of the Police Force, given the manner in which they responded to the initial report of Adriana being missing.

He added that the Government of Guyana has the ability to make a request to either the British, United States or Canadian Government, who he is confident will immediately indicate whether their law enforcement agencies can come forward and render assistance.

“Finally, in relation to Commissioner having to go, for the reasons that I have just said and because of the actions of the Guyana Police Force even before this body was found and most importantly, the complete absence of the Commissioner during any stage of this investigation to provide any information, the complete absence of the Minister of Home Affairs to provide any information when speculation was rife, I think is in addition to the other obvious reasons, those are reasons why he should go immediately,” Hughes commented.

Further, the AFC Leader said that the issue with a misleading police report that Adriana was seen leaving in a car raised a series of questions.

He reminded that the child’s mother told a police officer, after seeing the footage provided by police, that it was not her daughter entering the car.

“Why would the police, after having been informed by the mother of the child, ‘that is not my child’. Why would the police make a public statement saying that the child left in a motor vehicle which was identified at the specific time? So that means that the police are saying she was alive at that time, and more importantly, on what basis would they reject a statement from the mother who, having seen the same footage that they were relying on say, who said to them, this is not my daughter. Why would they reject that?” he explained.

Commenting on the revised Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), which was issued by the GPF following her death, Hughes stated that it is an improvement, but it is too little and unfortunately, in this specific case, too late.

“I think one of the things that is evident from not only this incident, from the shooting in Linden, and particularly the failure of the Guyana Police Force to carry out the recommendations of the 2013 COI [Commission of Inquiry], is that the Guyana Police Force is in need of a complete overhaul,” he expressed.

He added that the Police Force has had specific recommendations from the best in the Caribbean and the best locally, but has rejected them. “So, it’s not just a question of passing an SOP. As a matter of fact, that’s an insult to hustle to pass an SOP in the hope that they will pacify the absolute rejection that the public has and the lack of confidence they have in the police,” he noted.

Meanwhile, the political parties that were present condemned the looting and destruction of private and public property. They have since rejected the broader system that “Shoots first and explains never.”

In light of what took place, the political group is calling for respect for the right to peaceful protest, a ceasefire, and an end to the use of deadly force as a first resort.

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