Dear Editor,
SN’s Editorial of Sunday March 14, got it right… to a point. The wounds opened up by Pastor Doolichand at the Annual Officers’ Conference of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) are much deeper than just a matter of ‘sins’ of the force. Hopefully, the incident will serve to remind of the lessons of the life each of us live. Above all, it should serve as a reminder of the advice given by Polonius to Laertes in Shakespeare’s Hamlet; ‘To thine own self be true.’ Speaking truth to power and making efforts to cross the yawning gap between truth and power is not only applicable in the case involving the pastor and the police, it is applicable to each and every one of us. This is precisely what the pastor did. He spoke truth to power, that power being the GPF. The aphorism, ‘truth hurts’ was reflected in the statement issued by the GPF denouncing what the police considered as heresies referred to by the pastor. In the circumstances, the natural response by the police was to nip what the pastor said in the bud and to try to shut him up. But word was already out. How the police could shut down what was already in the public domain and had attracted attention at the highest levels of government? This brings into question the role of the two PR specialists who were recently recruited to manage the public relations department of the GPF. What were their roles, if any? Were they consulted or guided as to what should be an appropriate response? Was it they who formulated the press releases? Was any consideration given to the possibility that, not to disclose the truth, could be ethically and politically complicated, if not embarrassing especially in the context of someone who spoke truth to power in the presence of the president? And fall back on Standard Police Operating Procedures, which in effect rebuked Doolichand’s prayer and defended the status quo hoping the matter would go away?
And yes, there remain more questions than answers. For example, would it not have served the police better had they confessed to the institutional transgressions and to let the chips fall where they may? Such a confession would have sent the prestige of the GPF soaring to heights never seen before. A strong message to the rank and file of the GPF signaling to them, that it is far better to repent, than to exultantly advance by trampling over the pastor’s exhortations would have redounded to the benefit of the organization. Experience has shown that when such public confessions or apologies by pastor or politician appear to be too excessive for the ‘High and Mighty’ irrespective of the branch on which they may be perched, karma is bound to pay them visit. And so it came to pass that the ‘Empire’ decided to strike back and the GPF was forced to abandon its position, ending up badly wounded. The pastor’s description of the GPF as ‘so fragmented’ and as ‘hemorrhaging right now’ as well as its involvement in ‘corruption, bribery racism and injustice’ must be seen in the context of the controversy that arose in early January this year when the Police Service Commission sought to push through certain promotions that threw the entire process into a tailspin so much so that the promotions had to be aborted.
The GPF is a law enforcement body, it is there to enforce the law not the Bible. Its motto ‘To Serve and Protect’ means that the force ought not to engage in self-serving actions nor to protect itself from criticism. The pastor’s message to the GPF should be seen as an expression of his free will to speak truth to the power of an organization that has the capacity and authority to engage in overreach and to breach the guardrails of its own Standing Orders. The mistake was made when they opted to preserve the status quo and that the organization was strong and resilient. Every organization has secrets some closely guarded, others because of their zeitgeist they would invite a select few for a sneak and peak. But what the GPF needs to recognize is while criminal investigations can be kept under wraps for some time, incidents like the one involving the pastor cannot, because we are all fellow travelers in the era of transparency and accountability.
Sincerely,
Clement J. Rohee
