| By Abena Rockcliffe The Ministry of Home Affairs yesterday officially handed over a $158.4M building to the Guyana Police Force for the purpose of training and development. It was constructed by PD Contracting.The building, named the Guyana Police Force Officers Training Centre, was erected as part of the citizen security programme that is being funded by the Guyana Government and the Inter American Development Bank.The citizen security programme is being executed to enhance security in Guyana and according to programme Coordinator, Anil Ramnauth, successes are already being seen.The new $158.4M Guyana Police Force Officers Training CenterHe said yesterday that the programme aims to build capacity in the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Guyana Police Force and also includes a community action component which aims to deliver pathway for safe neighbourhoods. The two-storey building has a gross floor area of 15,320 square feet and utilizes common construction methodology with the typical reinforced concrete columns. The facility is fully air-conditioned and is outfitted with a modern auditorium that can seat 230.The building also has a library, reading centre, cafeteria recruitment center, information technology center, lecture theatre, classrooms, a registry area, store rooms and offices.Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee, said yesterday, that he was delighted to hand over the building but noted that “we” have interests and concerns.He said that the building is positioned to provide the appropriate environment which will allow for a wide range of training and programmes to be conducted by the force.He noted his expectation that the facility will be utilized to the max and recommended that it be done on full time basis “the classroom should be occupied by day and by night,” he recommended.The Minister said that the force has no place for rogue police officers and one of the methods that must be used to correct this deficiency is a high standard of training.He added that those who cannot be reformed or reoriented will be dealt with by the disciplinary code of the force.Rohee said that he hopes that training at the facility will complement those overseas programmes that are being provided for officers.He said that even before the building was constructed, officers were being trained. The building was erected so that the training environment will be conducive to the standards consistent with a modern force. He said that it is a tangible manifestation of government’s efforts to push ahead withstanding the efforts of the parliamentary opposition to stymie the reform process by voting down the proposed leg to enhance such.President Donald Ramotar thanked the IDB for its support. He said that training has always been important. He said, too,Cheap Jerseys From China, that because of the development of society it has become more so.As it relates to the programme, the president said that citizen security has an important role to play in the general development of Guyana. He said that it is needed for any society to advance and realize its potential.Ramotar said that it will help to attract investors, create confidents in society as citizens bring out the best when operating in secure surroundings. Ramotar said that because of the new types of crime in society, “which we are trying our best to deal with, like money laundering, drugs trafficking and cyber crime, we need new types of training. So we have to build new capacity in security forces particularly police men and women.”Acting Commissioner of Police, Leroy Brumell, accepted the building on behalf of the force. He said that it puts the force in a better position and recommended that someone be put in place to manage it on a daily basis. |
