The police force should not become a political footstool

Aug 19, 2018 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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The Guyana Police Force must not be turned into a political footstool. It makes no sense trying to change the Guyana Police Force, on the pretext of improving security, while at the same time refusing to establish a new police force.
If a new police force is not going to be established by retaining only 80% of the existing ranks, then there is only one choice to be made, and that is to improve the present force.
The morale of the Guyana Police Force needs to be improved and this is not going to happen with a government that is bent on making political appointments, including bypassing senior leadership for promotion.  It will be impossible to improve the present Force by shaking-up the succession process.
There is change in the air, but that change can be destabilizing to the hierarchy of the Guyana Police Force. David Ramnarine is next in line to become Commissioner, but all signals point to the fact that he will be bypassed in favour of a political appointee.
And while the supporters of the government may not be unhappy about the bypassing of Ramnarine, it sets a dangerous precedent. It says to those within the hierarchy of the Police Force that there is no guarantee that seniority will get you anywhere, or even hard work. What matters is political connections.
The second implication of a shake-up is that it demoralizes the senior leadership. They will begin to feel that it makes no sense for them to be professional, since there is no guarantee that this will aid in their advancement. The result is that some persons will see themselves are ‘travelers” within the Police Force, and will seek to fill their pockets and ensure their financial security after retirement.
The possibility of the bypassing of David Ramnarine will also raise questions as to if he is not suitable for the job of Commissioner. If not, then why is he being retained as acting Commissioner? The fact that he is acting should signal some sort of confidence in his work, since even his acting appointment had to be approved by the President.
The Guyana Police Force has enough problems, on its own, to now have to assume the burden of unpredictability in succession.  It is too heavy a burden for the Force to bear, and it will cause instability within the Force. This will further embolden the criminals and weakens the Force’s ability to fight crime.
This is danger that arises when statements are being made about finding persons of intelligence and integrity for the Force. What about ability? What about the other implications such as the instability, which will result from a break in succession tradition?
What about consistency?  How is it that no such criterion was alluded to when it came to the appointment of the Chiefs of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force? There has been no attempt to fiddle with natural succession with the military.  Chief of Staff Phillips was replaced by Chief of Staff Lewis and he has since retired and has been replaced by Chief of Staff West. No problems; no insecurity, at least not as yet.
One suggestion which has been made, and which is consistent with modern methods, is for the position to be advertised internationally, and a selection made from this process. Unfortunately, the experience within the Caribbean is that appointing foreigners as Commissioners has been a failure. They do not understand the societies in which they have to work and which breed so much crime. It has been a failed experiment, which should not be attempted in Guyana.
But equally bad is doing away with natural succession. What this does is to promote strife and division within the police force?
The Police Service Commission, which has a role in certain appointments, comprises persons who are primarily old, former serving members of the Guyana Police Force. It is befuddling that in this modern age, there is still the perception out there that those who have to make decisions about appointments to the Guyana Police Force should be ex-police officers.
What about human resource experts who can evaluate performance and put systems in place to ensure performance appraisals to guide them. What about a neutral perspective from someone who was not in the force? Why should the Police Service Commission be comprised mainly of persons who have served in the Force, and why should it be so ethnically imbalanced in a society which is polarized ethnically.
This brings us to the final implication of any attempt to politicize the appointment of a Commissioner of Police. There is going to be an ethnic fallout if race is perceived to be a factor in the appointment of a Commissioner of Police, especially if Ramnarine, as it now seems inevitable, will be bypassed.

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