Crash course planned to fast-track deployment of neighbourhood cops

The police force is currently processing over 100 applications from persons seeking to be “Neighbourhood Police,” and a crash course is to be organised to speed up the deployment of recruits, the Home Ministry says.

It is hoped that with the new batch of recruits, the number of Neighbourhood Police deployed on the ground will be boosted and this would go some way towards curbing domestic violence and child abuse in neighbourhoods across the country, the ministry said in a statement yesterday, while reaffirming its commitment to a new preventative and pro-active approach addressing domestic violence and child abuse in Guyana.

According to the ministry, it is seeking to employ 100 Neighbourhood Police ranks to increase the manpower available for daily neighbourhood patrols, since the police force does not have the numbers to patrol on foot in each village day and night.

The ministry explained that after processing, the selected applicants will undergo training at the Felix Austin Police Training College.

In addition, the ministry said that in order to expedite the process, it has requested the acting Police Commissioner Leroy Brumell to “organise a crash course” for the new recruits to prepare them to take up their duties and responsibilities in the neighbourhood to which they will be assigned as soon as possible.