Nobody should be in an office acting for three years.
So said acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams as he commented on his sixth six-month extension from the Police Service Commission (PSC) which will keep him in the post until January, next year.
“The issue of acting becomes irrelevant to you the individual, but the issue is one nobody should be exposed to,” Williams said.
Speaking at a roundtable discussion on crime and national security hosted by the Powerful Ladies of T&T (PLOTT) at the T&T Chamber of Commerce, in Westmoorings, yesterday, Williams said despite being given a sixth consecutive extension, which makes his acting tenure the longest ever in the history of the T&T Police Service (TTPS), he was still committed to developing the organisation while he was there.
“Whether I am eventually appointed or not is irrelevant. History has already been shaped. I have served three years and my performance will be in the historical records,” Williams said.
Pointing to statistics compiled by his office which showed that T&T recorded its lowest year for serious crime last year with 12,147 reported cases, Williams claimed that the reduction was directly related to restructuring of the organisation during his three-year tenure.
“The TTPS has taken a clear approach by setting up a strategic plan which we have rolled out. It is the first time in the history of the T&T Police Service that we have seen a clear outlined approach,” Williams said as he referred to his organisation’s annual operations plan which focuses on the training of officers, new anti-crime initiatives and a customer service-centred approach.
While he lauded the efforts of his executive team, Williams admitted that further improvements were still needed to the country’s crime situation, which he recognised as the main concern of successive governments and most citizens.
Asked about the impact of corruption on the TTPS, Williams said that removal of offending officers was an integral part of the organisation’s plans.
“The TTPS also still has problems in regards to corrupt officers but what we have seen in 2015 is that more police officers have been charged and prosecuted within the last six months than the whole of last year because we are focused on cleaning the organisation up,” Williams said.
As he appealed to his host and other similar NGOs to partner with the TTPS in the fight against crime, Williams suggested that they assist by working with at-risk youths who are members of the organisation’s 107 youth clubs acrosss T&T.
“It is probably the best kept secret in the fight against crime. Organisations can help us in working with these young people so that the next generation of adults will be productive citizens as against criminals,” Williams said.
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Williams was appointed to act in the top post on August 7, 2012, following the resignation of former police commissioner Dwayne Gibbs and deputy police commissioner Jack Ewatski, who returned to their homes in Canada.
The PSC which is tasked with the responsibility of selecting candidates for the posts and for monitoring and reviewing their performance has given Williams six extensions since his appointment and are yet to select a candidate for the permanent post.
The PSC’s work was reportedly hampered by the sudden resignation of Prof Ramesh Deosaran, last year. Deosaran’s resignation allegedly stemmed from apparent frustration over the failure of the Government to amend legislation to make the appointment of a police commissioner and other senior police officers less cumbersome.
The PSC was left without a quorum for several months because a chairman was not in place until President Anthony Carmona nominated Maria Therese Gomes, a sociologist and behavioural scientist, to replace Deosaran.