By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Staff Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
SOME Royal Bahamas Police Force officers are uneasy with the Christie administration’s decision to call in the Royal Bahamas Defence Force to assist them with policing, Police Staff Association Chairman Inspector Dwight Smith said yesterday.
“If we are in charge of doing something as police in this country and you hear other people are coming in from the military, how is that going to make you feel?” he questioned.
“It’s going to make you feel that you aren’t doing your job or that you failed, right? That is a concern. And it’s not sitting too well with all the officers, especially since it wasn’t planned out and officers were not a part of the planning for it.”
It is unclear if RBDF officers have started joint operations with police as part of efforts National Security Minister Dr Bernard Nottage announced in the House of Assembly last week to fight crime following an alarming spate of murders to start 2017.
In fact, Insp Smith said police officers are themselves in the dark about their collaboration with RBDF officers.
“What is the role of the defence force persons in this?” he asked, weeks after he was re-elected chairman of the PSA for the seventh time.
“I don’t know how the collaboration is supposed to work and I’m not sure if it’s even started yet. Everything is quiet. I’m not sure if it’s being done from a managerial perspective or not. We don’t know much about it even though we are the police association. You would think that they would call to encourage us to go ahead and help them pursue what they are trying to do since that’s what we are here for but not even that has happened. Everyone is guessing and we haven’t seen anything in policy or anything in writing to understand how this will be done.”
Insp Smith said the police force does not have a shortage of manpower that would make additional assistance necessary.
“I don’t think it’s a manpower issue because I remember the police commissioner saying we are well-manned and we have the resources and there’s just a small group of persons in the country who are taking the limelight because of their crime. The police commissioner knows what his manpower total is and I haven’t heard him say we are short.
“A joint collaboration with the defence force is not included in the policing plan or the force’s policies which comes directly from the police commissioner with the power the Constitution gives him and I’ve never heard him speak to it,” Insp Smith said.
However, Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade’s policing plan for 2017 calls for close collaboration with the country’s other law enforcement agencies, including the Departments of Customs and Immigration, Bahamas Department of Correctional Services, the RBDF, Port Department, Airport Authority, and the Road Traffic Department “to ensure that intelligence on crime and criminals is shared, evaluated and disseminated for operational purposes.”
Nonetheless, Insp Smith said: “We are trained to treat people as customers, even the criminals. The defence force has completely different training.”
During an event in 2015, Prime Minister Perry Christie said he was “subjected to walking on eggshells” when it came to crime fighting, despite wanting “the madness on our streets to end,” as he spoke of a “division” between police and the RBDF.
“Philosophically my terms of reference as an elected representative is to solve the problem,” Mr Christie had said earlier. “The eggshells is a reference to the division that exists between the military establishment and the police establishment…”
Meanwhile, Insp Smith also told The Tribune that he won’t seek re-election as PSA chairman again.
“I’ve been under the gun ever since being elected as chairman and you have to make a decision,” he said. “I definitely think the time is now for me to hand over the baton so my family doesn’t have to worry whether people are coming after me.”
Comments
ThisIsOurs 7 years, 2 months ago
I think it's a bunch of hogwash. They don't need more boots, they need modern technology and a better strategy. I don't think Bernard Nottage is capable of leading this, nothing against him, but he is tired and behind the times. He doesn't know how to address this, he's reactionary, once again reacting rather than telling us the cctv cameras are installed, the network is buffered with private data gathering cameras, the monitoring locations have been manned and the officers have had six months of training to oversee the system. Controls are in place to prevent misuse and abuse of data collected...but no..."more police, the nazi spy bill and smiling Algernon Allen with a bag of Wonder bread" is his response.
John 7 years, 2 months ago
The crooked cops don't want no one looking over their shoulder. The genuine cops will do what ever it takes to get the crime problem solved.
TalRussell 7 years, 2 months ago
Comrades! At least the former white Bay Street Boys - never dispatched the army into the poor communities.... instead by their assisting the poor, they felt it would bury their colonial empire ways guilt.
Remember the days before Jitneys and Chinese gifts riot gear - when the white ladies would actually drive their maids home after they did their cooking, washing and ironing?
I say good luck to the tired after 8 hours domestic servanting, if you're trying hitch a ride back home in the cars of the newly not so white middle class.
Guilt you say for the ways the poor be treated - guilt, what in hell is that?
sheeprunner12 7 years, 2 months ago
You do not know your history ......... the White Boys brought in the black West Indian Regiment to keep the ghetto quiet and off Bay Street 120 years ago .......... That is how the likes of Pindling and others got here
Alex_Charles 7 years, 2 months ago
truth
TalRussell 7 years, 2 months ago
Comrade Sheeprunner12, I never said the Bay Street Boys flexibility, didn't come serious limitations - still there is more to this period of our colonial history that you've not addressed. I think it's fair comment to say that when today's Bahamalanders thinks back on the ways of the former white Bay Street Boys - they're reflecting onward, forward from the days of Sir Stafford Sands.
John 7 years, 2 months ago
Tap Russel besides needing to learn English, you also need some tutorials in history. There was no defense force when the white boys were in power and neither was there the unabated crime like it is today. But when there were labor uprisings the government of the day (white boys) did bring in British soldiers who shot into crowds and killed black Bahamians. Go do to your research. And yes, much of the violence and killings in the country stems from economic dispositions but yet a lot of it is instigated by foreigners. The Black Bahamian male is the greatest asset and greatest natural resource this country has. So why, Tal Russel, is it being destroyed by the hundreds every year?
TalRussell 7 years, 2 months ago
Comrade John, there is crime the world over but if you were to ask me for the true reason, I'd want to place the blame at the doorsteps of capitalism and greed.
sheeprunner12 7 years, 2 months ago
The Defence Force is designed for border security and emergency backup in case of riots or invasions ........... but for the PLP top brass to put RBDF out on street patrol to catch criminals ...... it says that the COP and his DCPs should resign immediately
But the problem is the Attorney Generals's Office and DPP and the CJ Office ........ they should have all been fired two years ago
bogart 7 years, 2 months ago
Very observant. The Defense Force is trained differently than the Police and is is questionable whether their purpose will serve to apprehend and/or dissuade criminals. The sources should be tackled through the CID and intelligence. White collar crimes need to be addressed and if the authorities were better at preventing persons from not paying Customs Duties we would not have graduated to VAT where everyone has to pay and which has been so effectively done and extracted almost 1 billion dollars from the population the majority who can least afford it. White collar crimes, fraud, corruption, land crimes, Quieting, actions of some Boards of Directors - particularly when large companies go bankrupt and public finds automatically to smooth things over etcetc need to be investigated. The scarce public funds should not be used, instead the Directors should be accountable. Easy use of the Military may have unintentional consequences especially when the Tourists start sending photos of the Military in the streets.
John 7 years, 2 months ago
@ Tal Russell, you say the crime problem is caused by capitalism and greed. The most frequent victims of and, apparently, the most common perpetrators of crime in this country are the poor and the disenfranchised, persons barely with food to eat. So are you saying the capitalist society and the greed of others are leading both to be criminals and victims of crime. But if that was true then should not robbery and housebreaking be a bigger crime problem than the tit for tat killing and now shooting into crowds that is going on..
TalRussell 7 years, 2 months ago
Comrade John, maybe cause all brains are wired differently. Killers must have some kinds different brain activity that's directing their extreme criminal behaviour. Still, few are targeted for murder by strangers.
The most dangerous of all killers are the "thrill killers" Those S.O.B. criminal types my Comrade, are what we all must most fear and guard against.
MassExodus 7 years, 2 months ago
The police force need to put their ego's aside, because they out-gunned, and not respected.
The RBDF isn't great either, but the more eyes on these gangster's, and hood-rats, the better.
I think we should use methods used in authoritarian Singapore.
"Singapore legalised abortion in 1970, some three years before the United States. However, in addition to the legalisation of abortion in Singapore there was a coordinated strategy and effort on the part of the then-PM Lee Kuan Yew government for Singapore mothers to stop giving birth after having two children. Penalties in the form of reduced child support and the additional accouchement (child delivery) fees and incentives such as priority school admission for children of later ligated mothers (yes, you read that correctly, ligation) make for painful reading some thirty years after the widespread government policy was implemented. Readers interested in the evolution and history of Singapore’s anti-natalist policies are encouraged to read this 2009 post for some background.
Most importantly, the anti-natalist policies in Singapore were specifically targeted at low-income and lower-educated groups, which are recognised as demographic groups more likely to turn to crime. Meanwhile as Singapore’s crime rate fell throughout the 1990s and 2000s, so too did its fertility rate, in part ensuring crimes would stay low decades in the future."
-https://furrybrowndog.wordpress.com/2...">https://furrybrowndog.wordpress.com/2...
Government needs to take control of poverty, and education, because poor people will resort to crime, etc.
Of course this will never happen in the Bahamas but if it did I would celebrate.
bogart 7 years, 1 month ago
Good point. Planned growth is needed. Annually the Bahamas deports some 5,000 plus illegals. Many times the news cites figures like 27 adult males and 17 women apprehended. Somehow there are no children. Politicians also claim that every child is entitled to an education and given free medical and services it is attractive for illegals to have children to have a better life . Coupled with the Haitian culture of 'retyavik' or something sounding like that where children are left with better off Haitians in the hopes of having a better life. The part misconception of Haitian women having numerous children is that the other children may belong to the parents being deported. The end result may very well be that the Bahamas is basically two countries within one geographic area. Search the Bahamas o the internet and in many cases you will see that the Bahamas population speak english and haitian creole.
The_Oracle 7 years, 2 months ago
Is there not a prohibition against the Government using the RBDF in this Manner? In the RBDF charter? I'm sure this was a concern when it was created.
juju 7 years, 2 months ago
Comrade Tal Russell needs stop his comrade shit ... I mean ship. We be sick of hearing it.
TalRussell 7 years, 1 month ago
Comrade JuJu, "Comrade" is used throughout the Scriptures.
John 7 years, 1 month ago
The notion that Bahamians are having too many children is absolutely pure hogwash. Foolishness to the most high. When you travel to the Family Islands, some settlements have barely a handful of people. And the further South you go the seller is the handful. This population control, family planning bullcrap came out of the US where that country has been trying to reduce and control the black population of that country since they were freed from slavery. They tried everything : putting young black men in jails, sending them to war, poisoning their water supply, encouraging poor black women to get their tubes tied, introducing foods and drinks into black communities that would make the males sterile and the women less fertile and even promoting crime and violence and, yes even clod blooded murder through movies and music. And the Bahamas, being a mostly black population, got a lot of what was dished out to blacks in America. This thing that is here now, young men wring against themselves, and killing each other, and now even shooting and possibly killing anyone who happens to be present when they make a driveway of foot attack, this is new to the Bahamas. This is new to Bahamians and to other Caribbean nations, And yes it is even new to black Americans. The fact is black people has endured some of the most harsh, unrelenting and inhumane economic times than hardly any race on the planet. And with the exception of very few incidences they rely turned on each other. There was always endurance, toleration, forgiveness and yes, brotherly love. So who is really being this wave of crime and violence and murder.. Who wants young Bahamian men dead..Dead as door nails? And why? Some statements in posts above gives strong clues.
sheeprunner12 7 years, 1 month ago
John ......... there has been excessive rural to urban migration from the Out Islands for the past 60 years ........... Check the census records
And the politicians have NO development plan for the Out Islands
bogart 7 years, 1 month ago
Given that the second pillar is the Banking Industry and given that more profits have to be made, many of the Banks in following their foreign headoffices have been withdrawing their branches from the Family Islands. Persons go and seek employment where there are opportunities and when the banks close family island operations people follow to Nassau. Family islands are depopulated while Bahamian taxpayers still have to pay for roadways, electricity for govt buildings and only a few population. Investigations are needed in to the Banking industry in the bad loans given out some 4,000 mortgage defaults, a billion dollars of bad loans, billions more in collateral, hardship and untold suffering, misery faced by those who cannot challenge the banks as there are no protections against the banks with the best lawyers and deep pockets. Bahamians give away our birthright to lure foreign investors to build and provide jobs and the employed then go to the banks in Nassau and pay fees and get loans and theprofits flow out the back door to other Caribbean countries where these banks have centres answering phones giving advice and knowing your business, A BLATENT VIOLATION OF BAHAMIAN CONFIDENTIALITY having some foreign staff and Bahamian profits paying their salaries is ABSOLUTE BETRAYAL Thousands of phone calls monitored daily by other financial jurisdictions by citizens of other nations when you call your bank. Investigations are needed into why so many loans went bad largest in the Caribbean especially when customers paid a fee for the best advice to get a mortgage with a successful chance of repaying. Bahamian mortgage loan officers having large mortgage targets to give out need looking into particularly as their staff reports is judged. Areas of fraud, negligence and lack of due care and attention need to be independently explored, not by staff or agencies whose salaries or fees the same banks are paying.
SP 7 years, 1 month ago
**........ Flowers Taking Bets RBPF And RBDF Will Have Their Own War With-In 90 Days .......
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