Widen cop recruitment

THERE ARE not enough cops. There are not enough cops within the service. And there are not enough officers joining the ranks.

The causes of crime are complex. But the appalling breakdown of law and order, which triggered the current state of emergency, is explained by some simple arithmetic.

Police Service Social and Welfare Association president Gideon Dickson recently confirmed the sanctioned strength of the force is, to date, still unmet.

And according to top cop Erla Harewood-Christopher, certain “processes” have stymied recruitment despite government promises of a boost in personnel.

While the sanctioned strength of the service is 7,884, the number of officers currently on the payroll is 6,450.

However, because of absenteeism and leave, operational strength is effectively just 5,065.

To put that into perspective: in the last ten years, at least 5,479 people were murdered.

Assuming every single officer devoted themselves to solving each case (there is, in fact, a specialist homicide bureau), that would still not be enough to make real headway.

And that is just murders.

The workforce challenges of the police are not new.

The 2017 report of the Prof Ramesh Deosaran-led audit of the service examined this issue thoroughly.

Why has the state failed to address the numbers?

Police recruitment is a matter for the top cop, who oversees the service, and the Cabinet, which allocates funding.

In 2023, the government acted to triple annual recruitment, with Finance Minister Colm Imbert announcing in that year’s budget that 1,000 officers would be taken on for 2024.

Of that number, though, only 200 were passed out, with Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds stating in October that the remaining recruits will be sworn in as full-fledged officers in March 2025.

Ms Harewood-Christopher, speaking with the media on January 4, disclosed for the first time that part of the challenge has been applicants failing polygraph and psychometric tests.

Given all the concerns about bad-apple cops, it is reassuring authorities are being vigilant in terms of the type of individuals coming into the ranks.

We believe, however, that ongoing recruitment exercises need to be significantly expanded, notwithstanding that each such exercise regularly attracts throngs.

If there are not enough high-calibre candidates, the net must be cast wider.

Polygraphs, which are of debatable benefit, cannot be the end of the matter; individuals need to be more roundly vetted by specialist investigators.

Further, authorities should revamp the Police Academy and try to appeal to Gen Z.

They should actively recruit talent and labour from the Caricom region; this is not unprecedented, given the long history of such recruitment in the service, dating back to the arrival of Barbadian officers.

More cops on the beat can, and will, make a difference.