Dear Editor,
The vexed question is who will be Guyana’s next Commissioner of Police. According to a birth certificate, without the features of the new birth certificates currently being issued by the General Registration Office that I saw, the acting Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken will achieve the age of fifty-five on July 22, 2023. Therefore, according to the Public Service Commission rules he shall demit office on August 1, 2023 unless his service is extended by the President or a new birth certificate emerges with different features as was done in many instances in the past. Extension of the service of Commissioners of Police is nothing new in Guyana. Several Commissioners were extended. It is apposite to note that they all had negative issues during their periods of extension.
It started with Balram Raghubir and continued until Leroy Brummel was extended. During his extension, Commissioner Raghubir allegedly had some serious tax and other issues. His school teacher, President Desmond Hoyte, put a halt to the extension. He was posted to India as Guyana’s High Commissioner. Laurie Lewis’ extension was extremely controversial. When he reached sixty years and still on extension, the opposition PNC filed court proceedings against him. He was forced to hurriedly leave office. The next extended commissioner, Floyd Mc Donald, during his period of extension earned the gold medal for being the deadliest Commissioner.
Twenty six policemen of various rank structure were murdered in the line of duty during Mc Donald’s extended period as Commissioner. Instead of him giving out awards to his ranks, he was busy paying tributes at their funerals. He presided over the Force when the prison escapees, led by Dale Moore, Fine Man’s posse, the Phantom squad, Roger Khan’s notorious enterprise, and other individuals and groups were engaged in murderous acts across Guyana. Henry Greene took over the baton from Commissioner Winston Felix and had his service extended. During that time, he had to approach the High Court to prevent the Director of Public Prosecutions from recommending (to the police) that he be charged with the offence of rape.
The last extended Commissioner of Police, Leroy Brummel, had his extended stint of Commissioner abbreviated by President Donald Ramotar after a very senior police officer took a file to the President alleging that Brummel had inappropriately granted approval for a person to be issued with a firearm licence when the applicant had no just claim to obtain one. The appointment of a Commissioner of Police is the sole responsibility of the President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana. Article 211 (1) of the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana states, “The Commissioner of Police and every Deputy Commissioner of Police shall be appointed by the President acting after meaningful consultation with the Leader of the Opposition and Chairperson of the Police Service Commission after the Chairperson has consulted with the other members of the Commission.”
The same procedure applies for the appointment of acting Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner. According to the ruling of the Hon. Chief Justice, the present Police Service Commission is not legally and lawfully constituted. The Commission cannot perform any function unless the Chairperson of the Public Service Commission is sworn as a member of the Police Service Commission. There is no Public Service Commission, hence, no Chairperson. This leaves the President in a state of quandary. In the appointment of a new or acting Commissioner the President may be tempted to unlawfully shelter under the antiquated and seldom used Doctrine of Necessity.
There are many pretenders for the post of Commissioner of Police. Editor, please permit me to mention some names while others will be anonymous for diverse reasons. The most senior rank in the Force is Deputy Commissioner Dr. Paul Williams. Among the aspirants, he is the most qualified professionally and academically. However, he was banished to the Covid-19 Secretariat and is now at the Civil Defence Commission where he is basically monitoring the amount of rainfall in the country and dealing with floods. For reasons unknown, Deputy Commissioner, Dr. Williams is in the Government’s black book, hence, he will not be appointed the next Commissioner.
The next senior officer inline is Assistant Commissioner Royston Andries Jr. He is on a bogus charge before the Court. Therefore, he will not be considered for the top position. Assistant Commissioner, Simon McBean, comes up next in the line of seniority. After obtaining a degree in Policing and Global Security (England) he was dismissed by the Police Service Commission after that body bowed to political directions to unconstitutionally terminate his service. McBean successfully appealed his dismissal and he resumed duty in the Force. He is presently doing an excellent job as Regional Divisional Commander 4A, which is the largest police division in the country. Despite his outstanding performance he is not favoured for the top position.
Here is a character sketch of those pretenders who will be nameless, but you can read between the lines. There are many allegations against one of pretenders of financial irregularities involving millions of dollars. In addition, he has a very poor interpersonal relationship with his superiors, peers, subordinates and members of the public. Information received is that the US Embassy in Guyana is concerned about the relationship of another contender with corrupt businessmen. If appointed as Commissioner his visa is likely to be revoked if that was not already done. There is a contender who is carrying out the unlawful directions of the politicians with amazing ease. He boasted that he is good with the politicians and that the appointment of a Commissioner is a political one. As a result he shall be the 33rd Commissioner of Police.
Another pretender is gathering intelligence about the incompetent and corrupt activities of his competitors and submitting same to the movers and shakers of the Guyana Police Force. This is an effort to get the top spot. The final contestant is highly favoured by a house in Robb Street because of his ethnicity. He can become a good Commissioner if he stays clear of politics. The synergy among the senior officers is at an all-time low. Of all the contestants, Deputy Commissioner Dr. Williams and Assistant Commissioner McBean are the most qualified professionally and academically for the apex of management in the Force. It is feared that politics will have the upper hand in the appointment of a Commissioner or acting Commissioner. A politically inclined senior officer or someone outside of the Force will be the next Commissioner of Police. May God help the Guyana Police Force.
Sincerely,
Clinton Conway
Assistant Commissioner of Police
(Ret’d)
