by Acting Commissioner of Police Tyrone Griffith
Every year, members of the Royal Barbados Police Force are called upon to make personal sacrifices in order to cope with the increased demands for police services. The extent to which police officers enjoy each Christmas season is therefore contingent upon their ability to balance work with pleasure.
Law enforcement is never without challenges and during the year, the force was confronted by street crime that was fuelled by the trading of “cash for gold”.
A further challenge came from instances of theft that were subsequently linked to the sale of second-hand metals.
The issue of domestic violence continued to raise its ugly head and the force was compelled to deliver despite the imposition of budgetary constraints.
In responding to these issues, we were successful in agitating for and realizing the introduction of new legislation, placing a number of people before the law courts, setting up new departments, and introducing new systems and processes.
It is with this same vigour and sense of responsibility that we approach the Christmas season and maximized all available resources to police the island.
To date, crime trends in Barbados are showing a decrease when compared
to last year.
As Barbadians, we have had our share of tragedies this year. While some families mourned the loss of victims to homicide and road accidents, others grappled with the pain brought on by the untimely passing of family members; and members of the force mourned the loss of six colleagues who died in service within the year.
This Christmas season marks the first to be spent without them.
I wish at this time to say special thanks to:
•all members of the force for their contribution and sacrifice during the year despite the challenges that we faced;
• the families of policemen and women for being supportive to these officers while on the job;
• all governmental and non-governmental organisations that supported the force by way of sentiments of encouragement and financial support for training;
• all sections of the media for maintaining that very important link between the police and the public;
• members of the various publics for supporting us by way
of: supplying information that assisted in the solving of crime, writing letters
to compliment us, making complaints to ensure police officers are kept in line with established procedures and protocols, working with us
in ways that are non-confrontational, and
demonstrating to the world that Barbados remains a safe destination to visit and invest;
• all visitors to our island who showed appreciation for law enforcement efforts
and offered ideas and opinions from
different cultures.
During the course of this year, the Royal Barbados Police Force has demonstrated commitment and dedication to duty under trying circumstances.
We remain committed to fulfilling the mandate encapsulated in our motto which is To Serve, Protect And Reassure.
As we look to the year 2014, my hope and prayer is that greater levels of tolerance would prevail in our society; empathy and love would be guiding factors as we relate one to the other, and ultimately, reduced levels of crime will be realized.
On behalf of the senior administration, gazetted officers, inspectors, rank and file and other members of the Royal Barbados Police Force, I take this opportunity to express Christmas greetings to all and best wishes for 2014.
