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The new police commissioner must come with.
Friday, October 12, 2007
After a mere two years and nine months as head of the country's police force, one could hardly be blamed for believing rumours that Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas' resignation was triggered by a rift of some sort.
According to the lead story in yesterday's edition of the Daily Observer, even some of Commissioner Thomas' most senior officers were bowled over by his surprise announcement. They simply weren't expecting it.
Be that as it may, the commissioner has set the record straight concerning his reasons for leaving and we are not about to second-guess them.
However, we would hope that the next candidate who occupies the post comes to it with a clear mandate concerning the objectives that need to be met as well as the required time frame in which to realise them.
For while we recognise everyone's right to make their exit from the public service in favour of spending more time with their families, it seems that when one undertakes as visible and challenging a job as that of police commissioner, there should, on everyone's part, be some sort of understanding that they will stick around - unless, of course, they fail to perform to required standards - for a specified time in order to ensure that certain objectives are met.
After all, the job of police commissioner is not a slight undertaking to be ditched for reasons which, we submit, must have been apparent at the outset. For the individual concerned, it represents a major promotion as well as a huge undertaking in terms of mobilising and managing scarce resources to ensure that the country gets the best level of security available to it.
A certain level of continuity is most desirable at this level, and so the individual must come to the job for the long haul.
Said individual must possess the requisite level of experience, expertise and command the respect of his or her officers and the wider public.
For more than most, this job is about balance. It requires discipline, sensitivity and an ability to exercise discretion when necessary.
There is no need to pretend.
We all know that Jamaica has its own share of challenges where corruption is concerned.
And the eradication of corruption will not happen magically overnight.
There will be times when the new police commissioner will find him or herself between a rock and a hard place, having to make decisions which will not necessarily go down well with everyone.
When such times materialise, the individual will simply have to step up to the plate and make the decision that is in the best interest of the country as a whole. And they must have the security of tenure to do so. Otherwise, it may seem as if the job is a joke, to be undertaken and abandoned at one's whims and fancies, or when one suddenly happens upon the realisation that more time needs to be spent with family. And we are sure that no one worth his or her salt wants to go out like that.
Friday, October 12, 2007
After a mere two years and nine months as head of the country's police force, one could hardly be blamed for believing rumours that Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas' resignation was triggered by a rift of some sort.
According to the lead story in yesterday's edition of the Daily Observer, even some of Commissioner Thomas' most senior officers were bowled over by his surprise announcement. They simply weren't expecting it.
Be that as it may, the commissioner has set the record straight concerning his reasons for leaving and we are not about to second-guess them.
However, we would hope that the next candidate who occupies the post comes to it with a clear mandate concerning the objectives that need to be met as well as the required time frame in which to realise them.
For while we recognise everyone's right to make their exit from the public service in favour of spending more time with their families, it seems that when one undertakes as visible and challenging a job as that of police commissioner, there should, on everyone's part, be some sort of understanding that they will stick around - unless, of course, they fail to perform to required standards - for a specified time in order to ensure that certain objectives are met.
After all, the job of police commissioner is not a slight undertaking to be ditched for reasons which, we submit, must have been apparent at the outset. For the individual concerned, it represents a major promotion as well as a huge undertaking in terms of mobilising and managing scarce resources to ensure that the country gets the best level of security available to it.
A certain level of continuity is most desirable at this level, and so the individual must come to the job for the long haul.
Said individual must possess the requisite level of experience, expertise and command the respect of his or her officers and the wider public.
For more than most, this job is about balance. It requires discipline, sensitivity and an ability to exercise discretion when necessary.
There is no need to pretend.
We all know that Jamaica has its own share of challenges where corruption is concerned.
And the eradication of corruption will not happen magically overnight.
There will be times when the new police commissioner will find him or herself between a rock and a hard place, having to make decisions which will not necessarily go down well with everyone.
When such times materialise, the individual will simply have to step up to the plate and make the decision that is in the best interest of the country as a whole. And they must have the security of tenure to do so. Otherwise, it may seem as if the job is a joke, to be undertaken and abandoned at one's whims and fancies, or when one suddenly happens upon the realisation that more time needs to be spent with family. And we are sure that no one worth his or her salt wants to go out like that.
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