There will be a major shakeup of senior officers within the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda in the new year.
This was revealed by Commissioner of Police Wendel Robinson Wednesday morning on ABS television.
Robinson said the reshuffle of posts, from sergeant to superintendent of police, will be done with consultation and support from the Police Service Commission (PSC), which has to agree to the transfers, since this falls under its mandate.
He noted that the reorganisation also has to do with the recent increase in crime in Antigua and Barbuda.
Robinson said in situations like this you have to rethink, re-strategise and do some introspection, putting a new face at a department “to see how it works over three months over a six-month period as the case may be.”
“We are looking at our own strategic approach and we are going to make some drastic adjustments even within our police force fro next year. Drastic adjustments in the sense that we need to do some reshuffling of senior officers to various departments to ensure effectiveness and accountability as the case may be.
“With the support of the Police Service Commission and having regard to the fact that a number of senior officers have retired or are on pre-retirement leave, we will have to make some serious adjustments to personnel at the top. And I have been sitting and speaking with the deputy commissioner administration, Deputy Commissioner (Atlee) Rodney who will be in the vanguard to ensure that that is articulated and to receive the blessings of the Police Service Commission,” Commissioner Robinson said.
Robinson said at least 28 officers will leave the force next year and thus a reshuffling of posts is also necessary.
According to the commissioner, in order to increase effectiveness in an organisation strategic decisions must be made in order to improve efficiency.
He said a meeting will be held before the end of December to chart the way forward and to come up with a short term plan to achieve the force’s long term objectives.
