EXETER, Clarendon – Police Commissioner Rear Admiral Hardly Lewin received a tongue lashing from residents of this rural district on Friday when he told them that the hurricane-damaged Exeter Police Station would be downgraded to a police post.

Expressing strong objection to the decision, the residents lambasted Lewin, accusing him of being arrogant and uncompromising in the way he addressed them. They also insisted that the measure would not be accepted by the community.

“The way the commissioner talk to us today tell me that he has no regard for we the citizens. He has no manners,” shouted one farmer at a meeting called by Lewin on the grounds of the old police station.

The dilapidated police station, which housed a 14-man staff to police 16 districts, was damaged in 2004 by Hurricane Ivan, which completely destroyed the roof, and Hurricane Dean last August. The roof has not been replaced, and in October 2007 the police abandoned the station to operate out of the Lionel Town Police Station. They received mobile patrol assistance from the Milk River Police Station.

Immediately after his appointment last month, Lewin had said he would close down some police stations as part of a strategy to get more cops on the road and patrolling communities.

During the meeting on Friday, Lewin told the residents, “I know that everybody wants a police station right next door to them, because there is some sense of a feeling of greater security and so on. (But) I am not here to have any debate with anybody. I have had some discussions and I have looked and what we will undertake to do are two things; to continue the level of policing we have been doing within the surrounding communities, and there was an undertaking that some repairs could be done to the structure. When that is done, we will put in a police post with no more police than what you had before. All those will continue with the increased round-the-clock patrol and presence that we have been doing for the past several weeks.”

But the residents became boisterous and shouted, “This won’t work. It can’t work. That a foolishness. Him a lef we fe tief kill we and we pickney them.”

Although Lewin explained that despite the downgrade, the district would benefit from even more policing in terms of the number of patrols, another farmer responded, “We don’t want the station to leave from here. We want it to stay right here. When we call the station we get prompt response and we don’t believe that when the station change to a police post we will get that identical prompt response.”

But Lewin’s reply, however, further infuriated the residents.

“Well, Sir, that is your opinion. I made a statement, you said it was my opinion, you made a statement, that is your opinion. I will leave it there,” Lewin said.

“The commissioner rude. Him rude fe answer we so,” shouted the farmer. “Him too orogant (arrogant). Him must realise (that) he is not in the army no more. He is dealing with citizens now and the community of 16 districts. This area is so crime-infested, dem killing off people like flies and him a come tell we him a come put a post whey dem (police) can only write down something whey happen. When a man steal we goat or a cow, who we gwine report it to? for there will be no police fe help. Him is going around closing down police station. Dat can’t solve crime. A wonder if him know what going on in the country?”