JCF High Command addresses trainee concerns
The following is a response from the High Command of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) regarding media reports on the welfare of two batches of JCF recruits.
THE HIGH Command wishes to make it absolutely clear that there is no truth to the assertion or suggestion that resource constraints or limitations of the fiscal policy cycle are impacting the training of recruits. The JCF has the necessary resources to adequately produce new and vibrant members who are ready to tackle the ever-changing landscape of law enforcement in 21st-century Jamaica.
We are producing a vibrant, modern constabulary that is populated by members with the right training and organisational culture necessary to observe the rule of law, respect all members of society, and to be a force for good.
The batches in question (121 and 122) were initially designated to be passed out in December of 2019. They were trained at the National Police College of Jamaica (NPCJ) for an initial period of four months, after which they are sent to the Training Division for an additional four-month period of training in the live environment. After this period is completed, they are sent back to NPCJ for final tactical training before graduating, or being ‘passed out’.
However, due to the realities of violence and crime facing the country, coupled with the challenges to law and order in our main urban centers, the JCF and – more importantly – the nation needed them to remain deployed. Their continued deployment carried over into the new year, as the conditions on the ground remained largely the same.
It is a known fact that during the Yuletide season, there is an increased demand for policing services and, as such, all services deemed ‘non-essential’ are scaled down so as to boost police presence on the streets. Naturally, training would have been paused during this time, as members of the training staff were deployed to increase police presence and supervision in public spaces. This carried over into the second week of January 2020.
The batches were communicated with during that time and further told to report to the NPCJ this weekend, February 8, 2020, to begin three weeks of tactical training camp. The camp will culminate on March 6, 2020, with a graduation. There is NO undue delay in the process of producing these two batches of trainees.
QUALITATIVE ADJUSTMENTS
Given the changing nature of crime and criminality, we have seen the need to make certain qualitative adjustments in the nature of our tactical training. For the first time, a new training regime will be implemented aimed at improving tactical resilience. It is neither our practice historically nor our intention at present to discuss the efficacy of our training methods in the public domain, but it is imperative that we prepare our newest recruits for the continuous changes in the wider environment of law enforcement.
The JCF has taken all steps to ensure that during this period of tactical training, ALL sanitary necessities have been taken into consideration in the best interest of the recruits. Recruits need not speculate about the sanitary quality of training conditions – to the point of frustration – as their welfare and continuous development is of paramount importance.
Of note is the fact that JCF recruits serve a probationary period of two years, with a curriculum of continuous training designed for the entire period. Batches 121 and 122 are by no means at the end of their training in the force. More so, they are just at the beginning. As such, all decisions taken in relation to these and all other batches are based purely on the dynamics of a responsive force.