Police officers who did not receive promotions this time are advised to look at the positive side and try again.
This was the sentiment of Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony, who delivered the feature address titled “New Times, New Leadership”, at the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force’s Parade and Promotions Ceremony held at Derek Walcott Square in Castries on Sunday, August 2.
Forty-two police officers were officially promoted. (PHOTOS: Press Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister)
The prime minister said: “Even those who went through the promotions process but were not successful at this time must look with camaraderie at what has been achieved by you. Understandably, there will be some who are bitterly disappointed but remember, promotions are a regular feature and opportunities will come again. How disappointment is handled says a lot about the person and the individual.”
Dr. Anthony said even in law enforcement, healthy competition is always good, and the Force must not be a place that harbours hatred and ill-will.
“Society will have more confidence in a police force in which they know officers are led by women and men of character, courage and independence, totally and absolutely committed to applying the law without motive, ill-will or malice. The Police Force must not be a place of refuge for those who harbour hatred and ill-will to others, be it their neighbour or otherwise.”
He said promotions in the past have always been a “vexed issue”.
“It has undoubtedly been a source of anxiety and embarrassment for the entire force, with accusations of cliques and circles holding sway when it came to advancement through the ranks.”
He said It has taken some time to design and implement a formula for promotions in the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force. This new system, he said may not be perfect but it is far better than what exited in the past.
“Whatever flaws exist, we need to resolve them as it is vital that all police officers are confident in the decisions yielded by the process.”
The prime minister added that a professional and disciplined organisation can never afford to have its system of promotions be based on “favouritism, or nepotism, or merely the subjectivisms and opinions of a few”.
He said promotions should never be a “tool of discrimination or victimisation or the advancement of self-serving agendas”.
“The negative effects of such forms of promotion are clear to us all: demotivation and demoralisation, corruption, abuse of power, disrespect and insubordination, and indeed, even attrition of those who are frustrated. Furthermore, if the public holds no confidence in law enforcement promotions, it stands to reason they may likely hold little confidence in the enforcement of the law itself.”
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