THE formation of a special unit to probe claims of corruption against traffic cops and the re-birth of the traffic corruption hotline are among measures to be implemented by the police in an attempt to curtail alleged corruption among their colleagues who work the traffic beat.

“A special unit at the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) will be set up to investigate any reports of corruption,” said Francis Forbes, the police commissioner.

He was speaking with the Observer yesterday after a meeting with 172 of the island’s traffic cops where he told them of the new measures. The cops were summoned to a meeting at the Police Officer’s Club amid widespread public allegations of bribery and corruption.

According to Commissioner Forbes, the traffic hotline will be set up at the OPR; and in addition to being used by members of the public it will also be available to cops who want to report incidents of corruption without being identified.

“Officers who wish to report corruption without giving their name, rank or badge number will also be able to use the hotline,” Forbes said.

Other measures to come on-stream include the re-issuing of a pamphlet that supplies information on motorists’ rights and responsibilities during a traffic stop, as well as the prosecution of persons who are found to have made false accusations against police officers.

“Anyone who is found to have made false accusations will be prosecuted,” Forbes warned.

Traffic cops yesterday assured Forbes of their commitment to tackling corruption and weeding out the bad lawmen among them.

“Not every man take money and we tired a the bad name. So any man we hold and him not straight, not even Jesus can save him,” said one traffic cop who opted not to give his name.

There are 192 traffic cops who patrol on motorcycles islandwide and 150 highway patrol cops.

Forbes had called for yesterday’s emergency meeting, last Friday, to tackle allegations of ill-mannered and corrupt traffic cops head-on.

“I am getting too many complaints involving the traffic police, particularly about taking bribes from motorists, and their general lack of manner in dealing with motorists and the general public,” he said in a statement issued by the Constabulary Communication Network on Friday. “Police officers must understand that respecting the human rights of the Jamaican people begins with respecting dignity.”

Yesterday’s meeting was also called to address cabbies’ concerns that the police were targeting them unjustly in spot checks and demanding money from them.