Prime Minister Andrew Holness on Friday revealed that he has been flooded with petitions for Deputy Commissioner of Police Fitz Bailey to remain within the constabulary, and hinted that the veteran cop, whose retirement took effect on September 7, will be assigned elsewhere to continue crime fighting.

“Today is exactly 40 years and seven months. In anything, whether an institution or an individual, 40 years is a long time, so you could easily say that Fitz has dedicated his useful life to the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), and now he is going to make use of the remainder of his life,” Holness said Friday at a special dinner in honour of Bailey.

“I have never gotten so many petitions for anyone to remain in their position. I have gotten calls from members of civil society, members of the private sector, just average persons. You have developed a great deal of goodwill in the country,” Holness told Bailey.

Noting that other cops are considered “brand name policemen” making their “names over and above the institution, some of them not based on institutional policies and principles”, Holness said Bailey “has made his name because he exemplifies the policies and the principles we would all want to see in the JCF”.

“Therefore, some persons would use this to say that is why Fitz should remain, you should find every way to keep him in the force; I understand, I am sympathetic to that view, but whenever I take the time to listen to the public there is a sense that the public, and in particular those persons in elite positions, have not yet gotten the memo that this is a different JCF. We are living in a different Jamaica. First of all, for the JCF to produce a Fitz Bailey is a credit to the JCF. Second of all, for the JCF to feel that Fitz, having served, reached his time, he is going to retire, that is a signal to say that the JCF is not short of talent like Fitz Bailey,” the prime minister said.

In the meantime, Holness, in declaring that the JCF has institutionalised the principles that DCP Bailey exemplifies and has now been transformed to be seen as a force for good, said “So Fitz, we are not losing you, we are creating space for those you have trained…to also emerge …to keep the organisation refreshing and renewing”.

“Your leaving the JCF is not a loss to the nation because I am sure that there will be other areas in which your skills will be most useful and I would want to see you serving in some of these areas,” Holness said.

In expressing his admiration for the policeman who is also a bishop, Holness, while stating tongue-in-cheek, “I don’t know if you pray before you shoot, but I am certain that there is divine guidance in all that you have done. Your pathway has been lighted by the Almighty.”

He said that Bailey, who was baptised at the age of 12, “stuck with” his church, God, and family and is to “be praised and admired”.

Bailey, who was first assigned to the Beat and Foot Patrol Division, rose through the ranks to his current position as deputy commissioner with responsibility for the crime and security portfolio, with oversight responsibility for the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB), Intelligence Branch and the Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch (C-TOC).

He led the revamping and reorganising of the detective training programme to include the instruction of crime analysts who are deployed to all police divisions and area headquarters in the JCF.

Bailey holds a Master of Science in Psychology and Criminal Investigation from the University of Liverpool; a Master of Science in National Security and Strategies from The University of the West Indies, Mona; and an Associate Degree in Accounting from Management Institute for National Development.

He was instrumental in the review and reorganising of the JCF’s Crime Reporting and Case Management Policy, the development of a Stolen Motor Vehicle Policy and the establishment of a Cold Case Unit at the Major Investigations Division.

The veteran lawman has received training in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Trinidad, and El Salvador.

In the course of his involvement with criminal investigation and the training of investigators, Bailey has lectured on various aspects of criminology and is regarded for his significant contribution to the reform and modernisation of gang investigations in Jamaica.

Bailey was made a member of the Order of Distinction, Officer Class in 2021 and received the Medal of Honour for Meritorious Service in 2011. He is a minister of religion, a marriage officer, and a justice of the peace.