Disciplinary action for any Police rank breaching GPF policies – Top Cop warns

While addressing newly-promoted junior ranks of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) on Tuesday, acting Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken warned that disciplinary action would be taken against any rank found in breach of existing policies.
At the time, Hicken was reminding the ranks of how professionalism is paramount, for the public to have confidence in the Police Force.
“You are ambassadors of the organisation, you are the faces of the organisation, you are the broader side of the pyramid…you are at the operational level of the pyramid and this means that, inevitably, you are interacting with members of the public on a daily basis, more often than us at the senior level.
“As such, your deliberation with members of the public whom you are employed to serve and protect will speak volumes of the Guyana Police Force. Your actions will impact the organisation positively or negatively. In this regard, unethical behaviours will not be condoned,” acting Police Commissioner Hicken said.
Furthermore, he noted, that senior officers, along with himself, were building bridges at the senior level, making it imperative that continuity reached the level of junior ranks.
“…it is very important for you to understand that when reports are made at the stations or outposts, people expect Police to respond. Police should follow up occurrences and give timely feedback to victims/complainants in relation to the status quo of the investigation,” he said.
In addition, he said that the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) would conduct inspections to ensure that there were adequate supervision and command and control at the divisional level, sub-divisional level, and the level of the station sergeant to enhance performance with a view to meet the demands of the public.
“Crime prevention strategies must be championed at the level of the junior supervisors who are more often than ever in the communities responding to reports or on patrols, hence it is very necessary for interactions, information sharing and other activities that can help to prevent youths from being forced into community or peer pressure to commit breaches of the law,” Hicken posited.
The Top Cop urged the newly-promoted ranks to fan out in the communities and engage in constructive activities, that will target youth development. This posture, he believes, will earn the respect of the public. (G9)