Laughable police officers' protest
Published:Tuesday | March 9, 2010 | 12:00 AM
The Editor,
Sir:
We read about them from time to time, these policemen on bail awaiting their day in court, who take advantage of their US visa and their unseeing, nonchalant superiors, to flee to sanctuary and a new start in America. I have often wondered how many times this would have to happen before the constabulary top brass would intercede to do the obvious, but I was never that lucky. It almost seemed like they wanted the corrupt cops to make good their escape.
It is quite laughable then, that no less than the Police Officers' Association (POA) is pressing for answers from the high command regarding the cancellation of the US non-immigrant visa of a superintendent allegedly under investigation for corruption. I am sure no answers will be forthcoming, since the high command carries no weight outside the small pond of their jurisdiction in our society, and the US Embassy is under no obligation to justify its decisions.
Allegations that the high command has embarked on a mission to unearth the source of the leak to the US Embassy, causing them to cancel the visa, have been fortunately laid to rest by Acting Commissioner Owen Ellington, who has also denied knowledge of any letter notifying the embassy of the officer's status with a request for his visa to be revoked. Ellington would do well to establish the protocol that would ensure that members of the force under investigation, especially for criminal activity, are unable to abscond, a feat they seem to find difficult to accomplish.
The feverish to-and-fro of the POA chairman and many others indicate that the US consular team has hit a hot button and has succeeded in gaining their attention. A US visa is a prized possession to a great many Jamaicans, so it is understandable that anxieties are running high.
To those who still do not understand, while our population continues to whimper and moan about high crime and corruption but make no demands on a dithering, inept government for action, representatives of a foreign power have finally decided on our behalf, that enough is enough.
I am, etc.,
KADENE PORTER