On the face of it, the country will be spared unseemly bickering over the appointment of a new head of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

Prime Minister Bruce Golding apparently has no objection - or will not object - to the reported recommendation by the Police Service Commission of Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin to be the island's top cop. That, at least at the political level, is good for Mr. Golding's young government. For it could hardly handle another sapping and distracting fight over constitutional authority, given the PM's current quarrel with the Public Service Commission - and the Governor-General - over the commission's insistence that Professor Stephen Vasciannie is the right candidate for the job of Solicitor General.

But there are other reasons why this newspaper is glad over the absence of a constitutional brawl over the imminent formal appointment of Mr. Lewin.

Not least of these reasons is the fact that violent criminality is the most serious and pressing problem facing Jamaica, requiring concerted action and national consensus if it is to be successfully addressed. Moreover, defeating crime in the context of an environment where the homicide rate is more than 60 per 100,000 and the response to criminality swings between fear and amorality demands bold and extraordinary leadership.

We make no value judgement about the skills or characters of the other applicants for the job. Nor do we seek directly to compare their attributes with those of Rear Admiral Lewin.

Suffice it to say, however, that we believe and agree with the Police Service Commission that at this particular time, and given all the circumstances, Rear Admiral Lewin is the best person to man the bridge.

First, there has not been a whiff of scandal around Rear Admiral Lewin during his long tenure in the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), from which he has just retired after a five-year stint as its Chief of Staff. We are confident that he can and will enjoy the confidence of Jamaica's international partners with whom he will have to interact in contending with the transnational business of crime.

We believe, too, that he will bring to the JCF the requisite leadership skills and appreciation of the problems he faces to make a difference. Indeed, the JDF, under his leadership, remained a professional and disciplined organisation, unlike the police force, which is widely acknowledged to be riddled with corruption. Changing the image and reputation will have to be among his first tasks, to which he will meet resistance from those who have an interest in the maintenance of the current order and those who genuinely believe that the new police commissioner should have been appointed from within the ranks of the JCF.

Rear Admiral Lewin has both the leadership and management skills to overcome this barrier. We are sanguine, too, that he will be willing to go after the criminals, whatever their cover, and that he will bring to the process intellect, sobriety and sophistication.