ST JAMES, Jamaica – High-ranking police officers in Area One of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) have expressed gratitude for the Sandals Corporate University (SCU) Leadership Training Initiative.

The Area One police division comprises Trelawny, St James, Hanover and Westmoreland.

The programme is a collaboration between the two entities and provide members of the force with leadership training. It also served to sensitise officers about their contribution to the success of the tourism industry and the island’s economy.

Some 210 officers, who were trained in the pilot phase of the programme, were awarded certificates for completing the programme, during a ceremony held recently at Sandals Montego Bay in St James, recently.

Head of the St James Police Division, Senior Superintendent, Eron Samuels, noted that the training has encouraged members of the JCF to have greater appreciation for working in the division.

“We have a lot of persons who are visitors coming in and we have a lot of persons working within this industry [tourism].  They are keen to note that, whilst we still have to do our hardcore policing, we can interact with persons from overseas, plus the local persons. It’s not the direct type of hardcore policing that we want to do daily with these persons,” Samuels told JIS News.

“The possibility that this can spread to the entire JCF, I believe that will do wonders. I believe that we should always have positive interactions with members of the public and this will give them that trust. The prestige of going through SCU is one that I believe that many of our police officers will appreciate,” he added.

Samuels added that the JCF will continue to work closely with Sandals and other stakeholders to ensure that the organisation’s targets are met, such as further lowering the murder rate on the island.

For his part, Head of the Westmoreland police division, Senior Superintendent Othneil Dobson, told JIS News that the programme was well designed and crafted to blend security and tourism.

“The modules covered most of the things that we need, to know the economic value of tourism to Jamaica. Emotional intelligence and other topics were some of the high points. The participants accepted and assimilated the information very well. I think it’s a very good gesture that needs to be continued,” Dobson said.

“It should be extended to the 14,000 plus members of the JCF, so that we can have a greater appreciation of the importance of tourism and security working together, as we strive to increase security for our citizens and visitors,” he added.

For his part, Operations Officer for Area One, Senior Superintendent Carlos Russell, indicated that the programme outlined the JCF’s role in sustaining tourism on the island.

“We did a lot of modules during the course that looked at self-control, conflict management, as well as how our role ensures that the tourism product is not affected [by crime]. On a day-to-day basis, as police officers, we are out there fighting crime, but sometimes we don’t look at the overall picture, such as how our actions impact the tourism product,” Russell pointed out.

Also in attendance at the ceremony were Minister of National Security, Horace Chang; Commissioner of Police, Kevin Blake; and Executive Chairman of Sandals Resorts International (SRI), Adam Stewart.

–         JIS