Police chief more focused on partnerships than polls
Published:Wednesday | September 7, 2022 | 12:11 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson has downplayed an RJRGLEANER Group-commissioned Don Anderson poll that gave him and National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang failing grades, saying he is focusing more on the constabulary’s partnerships in fighting crime.
The poll, which was conducted between July 16 and 25, found that 93 per cent of the 1,113 Jamaicans canvassed had little or no confidence in Chang’s ability to manage the national security portfolio, while 91 per cent expressed little or no confidence in Anderson’s leadership of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).
“I saw the poll, and I know there has been a lot of discussions around it and its contents, but I have to remain focused on what we are doing and communicating, as I am now, and in other forums, with the public,” Anderson said during a press briefing Tuesday.
Anderson emphasised the local and international partnerships the JCF has sought to forge in its efforts to curb crime, as well as the reactions he gets from residents when he and his teams are out in the field.
He also said that he has been heartened by feedback on the streets to the police’s work.
“When I look at the partnerships and the offers of partnership, and the persons who wish to partner with us, to brand with us, and to move things forward, I take note of that, and I think that is important for myself as commissioner, and for the entire team as we look at our strategies going forward and what we actually do,” said Anderson.
“I do not live in the office; I am on the road, I am outside, and I am among the people, and I get first-hand feedback from those people. It is the small people who tell you thanks sometimes and push you forward for what you are doing, and encourage you, and it is also your own members that create the environment where you drive forward,” Anderson added.
The Anderson poll, which has a margin of error of plus or minus three per cent, also indicated that 94 per cent of respondents had little or no confidence in the JCF itself, while 75 per cent held a similarly low view of the Jamaica Defence Force.
By contrast, only six per cent of respondents expressed a lot of confidence in the JCF, while 25 per cent had that assessment of the JDF.
Meanwhile, the commissioner pointed to the JCF’s ongoing partnership with stakeholders in St James for the implementation of the Operation Restore Paradise public-order campaign, which was launched on August 15 to bring law and order to Montego Bay, following in the footsteps of a similar initiative in 2019.
“We are seeing improvements in terms of the overall appearance of the downtown area and the restoration of order. This initiative required a multi-agency approach, and in order to sustain these improvements, a long-term commitment from all of the stakeholders involved is critical,” said Anderson.