The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

THE Senior Command of the Royal Bahamas Police Force visited several communities in the capital on Friday, marking the official start of “Police Month” and the 179th anniversary of the force.

Commissioner of Police Anthony Ferguson led walkthroughs in New Providence with the Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) and several noted church leaders, as part of ongoing efforts to connect residents throughout the country with the community arm of the force.

Speaking to a group of reporters at the intersection of Peter Street and Hospital Lane, the first stop Friday, Commissioner Ferguson called the initiative “powerful,” insisting that bridging the gaps between law enforcement and communities can go a long way in addressing crime.

“Coming here, we see a number of persons assembled in those yards; those are some of the people we want to make sure that we are able to reach. That is the whole purpose of (being) out here today,” he sad.

“... (We want to) reach those persons to let them know that there is a better way… as you would know, when you look at these areas these are the areas that we have most crime. And so, we want to be able to get in there and talk to people and make sure that the people know their officers in their various communities.”

Commissioner Ferguson insisted relationships between residents and police could yield results in community based violence and crime, if properly executed.

RBPF officers walking the streets Friday included several community based branches and Urban Renewal Units.

These teams included officers from the most recent recruit class and several new vehicles commissioned by the National Security Minister Marvin Dames earlier this year to aid in community policing.

When pressed by a reporter to speak directly to how the new officers and resources were assisting the force with the crime fighting efforts, Commissioner Ferguson said: “I want you to turn your cameras so you can see them so we just don’t be talking…you are able to see the young, strong Bahamian men and women who just passed out in December; they are here.”

The walkabout continued onto Hospital Lane, into surrounding pockets of the Bain and Grants Town community, before officers moved over to the Miami Street section of the Englerston community.

For his part, BCC president Delton Fernander underscored the essential role of the church in supporting the police as they look for a way to improve their community relations.

Mr Fernander stressed that the BCC is committed to supporting officers, pointing to their backing of the RBPF’s calendar of events scheduled for this month.

“We are showing the partnership that already exists between the police force and the Christian Council,” he said.

“As we begin police month, we have committed ourselves to all of the facets of community policing. We made that evident at the march the other day.”

“Today, we came out again to walk-through all of the communities with the Commissioner and his team to let them know that the Church is committed.”

Mr Fernander continued: “On the third Sunday of this month, the 17th, we are asking every church in the commonwealth of the Bahamas, during their service, to pray for officers that are in their congregation and those that are serving in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.”

He said the church is committed to helping eradicate some of the challenges officers face in crime-concentrated communities, insisting that as a collective, the church lives in these communities and needed to come out and assist.

Those sentiments were backed up by Grace Community Church pastor, Lyall Bethel, who at later stops in the Whites Addition section of Kemp Road contended the church needed to do a better job working with various “engines” of society to ensure improvement throughout the country.

To that end, Pastor Bethel said his church had adopted several schools in the area, established a community feeding programme and other similar initiatives to do its part to grow the community.

“All of these are things we have tried to do because we realised that you can’t just tell someone they need to be saved,” he added. “You need to give them more than that so that they can be a productive part of the building of society. We realise that the church just cannot be a Sunday morning thing. The church is always the church.”

Mr Bethel continued: “And the church is always salt and light making an impact wherever we go. And so, it is only natural that we would be with the police moving around. Not just because we want to be on camera, I had no idea y’all were coming…but we believe that it is very important to make an impact on the street level where life is lived. Where the rubber meets the road.”

Police visited five communities on Friday. In addition to Bain and Grants Town, Englerston, Flamingo Gardens and Kemp Road, officers also toured Nassau Village.

While at the latter, Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Maycock, the acting commander of the Southeastern Division, provided members of the press with an update on crime trends in the area.

He noted that while crime has continued to trend down in the Nassau Village community, there continues to be a steady rise in the theft of cars and car parts.

At the conclusion of Friday’s walkabout, Commissioner Ferguson invited members of the public to join police at their numerous public gatherings this month.

He also called for a crime-free month of March and thanked those organisations that have partnered with the RBPF to carry out its mandate and initiatives this month.