POLICE Commissioner Lucius Thomas last night warned incompetent and under-performing members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to get their acts together.

At the same time, he issued another stern warning to corrupt cops, whom he said were operating contrary to the JCF’s mandate.

Commissioner Thomas, who was speaking at a Carol Service at the Police Officers Club, told the cops that the days of under-performing and incompetence are over.

“All members of the force must pull their weight,” he said in a prepared text for last night’s service.

“If you don’t, we will never be able to fulfil our mandate,” Thomas said.

The police chief also made it clear that his modern police force has no place for corrupt cops, saying their actions were no different from those of the other “criminals in our society”.

“I issue a stern warning to these delinquents, stop your evil deeds now or get out of the force,” he said, urging the good policemen and women to take a stand against corruption and wrong doing.

The commissioner has repeatedly spoken out against corruption among members of his flock and in June told the annual conference of the Jamaica Police Federation that some members, even some in senior ranks, were involved in shady activities from supplying criminals with bullets to using marked vehicles to load and escort drug.

The commissioner’s remarks were followed by the dismissal and arrests of several cops for unprofessional conduct – a drive which was spearheaded by the Professional Standards Branch which began operations on June 1 with a mandate to rid the force of corruption.

Up until mid-July, 19 cops – five of whom were convicted for criminal offences – were dismissed from the force, while another 21 were put before the courts to answer charges of corruption and other illegal activities. At the same time, another 11 cops were fined in internal inquiries while nine were suspended for various offences.

Last night, Thomas made it clear that illegal acts would not be tolerated in the force.

“Make it known and take appropriate actions when necessary to ostracise those who are not maintaining the force’s rules and regulations,” he said. “Don’t hesitate to point out wrongdoers; they only tarnish our good name and we cannot allow that to happen,” the commissioner said.

According to the commissioner, restoring good relationships between police and citizens can only be gained through trust and the respecting of citizens’ rights.

But while chiding the bad among his flock, the commissioner also took time out to highlight some of the strides the force has made since January.

Among the successes, he said, were the disruption of the illegal drug trade, the dismantling of some criminal gangs and the confiscation of 626 illegal firearms off the nation’s streets – a figure which represented 89 more seizures than last year. He said motor vehicle accidents were down by 13 per cent, which resulted in 35 fewer fatalities over the period.

“There has been a qualitative improvement in our crime scene reporting and investigation techniques; we have improved in the area of preservation of evidence and our improved testing and forensic capabilities have made it easier to get convictions in the courts,” he added.

The commissioner assured the members of the force that he would continue to work to improve their working conditions and urged them not to use the current environment as an “excuse for shoddy work or an invitation to perpetrate wrong”.