KINGSTON, Jamaica — Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Paul Bernard has apologised for comments he made at a recent sitting of the St Catherine Municipal Corporation, where he labelled licensed firearm holders and other citizens as cowards.

Bernard made the comments while addressing issues related to a recent flare-up of violence in the St Catherine communities of Commodore, Banbury, and Treadways.

According to Bernard, citizens are quick to use their cell phones to record incidents involving the police but are reluctant to take such action when it includes criminal elements.

“What I would say on that though, we cannot police from a distance. And some of the residents—they are cowards. If you go there to look for Ms Murphy, they’ll see you and video you, but when they see the criminals, they say, ‘A me G dat, mon,’” said Bernard.

“A lot of us are cowards, even the firearm holders inside here. Most of you are cowards. Tell me when last you hear a firearm holder shoot somebody,” asked Bernard, whose question was met with a disapproving uproar from members of the municipality.

Bernard further said that citizens had left the fight against crime to the police alone.

In a recorded apology posted to the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s social media pages on Monday, Bernard reiterated the importance of community policing, noting that he was truly sorry for his comments at the municipal corporation meeting.

“I would like to extend my deepest apologies for the comments I made at the recent meeting of our municipal corporation. The statements were inappropriate and do not reflect the values and standards of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. I recognise that my remarks were an error in judgment and were not in line with the principles of stakeholder engagement that we, as members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, are committed to,” said Bernard.

“As a 38-year advocate of community-based policing, I am deeply sorry for any distress or harm my words may have caused to the community, my colleagues, and the wider public. The success that the St Catherine North division, and by extension, the wider JCF, has been able to achieve has come through building effective partnerships between the police and our citizens’ groups. My comments are not reflective of the transformation in quality that we have engaged in,” he added.

Bernard further said he was prepared to face the consequences of his actions and was committed to learning from the experience to ensure that his behaviour is never repeated.