Dear Editor,
The Guyana Defence and Police Forces need to change their tactics since both entities could contribute to crime in our society. They take an individual, train him/her in combat which includes operating various types of deadly weapons and teach them to survive on the barest of necessities (the GDF training is deadlier). Then following an infraction they are dismissed from service ‒ most times unmonitored.
Most of these individuals have no other skill but what they’ve been trained for, and when they leave the service their options are limited. They could either take a security position with a guard service where they have legal access to weapons, or they might possibly be drawn into crime.
And this is known. Even in cases where uniformed junior officers are caught committing a crime, the first thing that’s done is to dismiss the person and have them face the court where in some cases it’s a bailable offence or else they do just a short stint in prison before being released into society without any monitoring or assistance so they are positive towards society.
Also the recruiting system requires thorough vetting, both psychological and in terms of background.
Yours faithfully,
Stan Gouveia
