Prosperity has a sworn companion. Crime. And crime has a well-known enemy. Tourism. They usually do not occupy the same room for tourism flees from crime.
And the business of the BVI, the pillar that supports approximately 2/3 of its people, is tourism.
BVI has a conundrum. Those responsible for the rule of law, the UK through its Minister for National Security, the Governor; And those who speak with the voice of the people; the elected leaders, are at odds.
They are not speaking with one voice although they sit weekly in a constitutional construct called the National Security Council.
They are at odds over the role, or rather, the appointment of the Police Commissioner, a role that is pivotal in addressing crime. A role that should never fall to the argy-bargy of bureaucratic and political machinations.
The constitution is clear with respect to the Governor’s responsibilities under S 60 for “…internal security including the Police Force.”
Notwithstanding, institutions like the Police Services Commission have been given a role. At present, the Commission is not in a cooperative mood.
It, too, is at odds with the National Security Minister but his clearance is high enough to override their recommendations.
Primarily, Commissioners of Police hail from the UK except that we had 2 anomalies in the appointments of the late Vernon E Malone QPM, LLB, CPA (1992-2002) and Reynell Frazer (2005-2012).
And now, we have an Ag. Commissioner who was at the centre of a debate as to whether an appointment should be made or the way cleared for the usual appointment of a national from the Kingdom.
The way has been cleared, unilaterally, by the Minister for National Security. He has the powers under the constitution to do so.
And although it is painful that the Ag. Commissioner is being reverted to her substantive role, such moves are not uncommon in bureaucracies.
(We flashback to July 1944 in Bretton Woods when the IMF and World Bank were created. The conventional agreement between the parties was that the Americans would always appoint the Head of the World Bank and the Europeans, the IMF.
That practice continues.)
If the Minister for National Security has a similar authority; He does; Transparency takes flight.
We had some hits and misses with Kingdom sourced and appointed Commissioners but the lone COI Commissioner made it clear that the kingdom can be trusted to get it right.
Sometimes we wonder and tremble!
If news reports are true, then the former Police Commissioner, a kingdom appointee, left the Territory with some outstanding issues and the public has not been informed that any resolutions were attempted.
And if we rely on similar reports, they will say that the Ag Commissioner has been doing a credible job. So why the protracted and callous treatment that, to her, bordered on the inhumane and sparked an outrage in the community?
And how will she be treated once the kingdom’s appointee is in place? Can she expect fair play? Will she be sidelined and ignored? Forced out?
It may very well be that the appointment has little if anything to do with performance and competence since the role of the Police Commissioner may also be one that the kingdom uses for intelligence gathering.
In the past, UK appointments ring fenced officialdom. The Financial Secretary, The Attorney General, The Police Commissioner and many department heads hailed from the UK.
In many instances, it was a question of local capacity but as time marched, education and training allowed local participation. But one appointment seems to be off limits- that of the Police Commissioner.
But it is always a dangerous subject, who must be appointed the Police Commissioner, because we expect the post holder to protect us and to suppress lawlessness.
Crime and lawlessness are, of course, in an unprecedented ascendancy in the Territory. And we need the National Security Minister to assiduously work on our behalf.
Was he holding back because of an appointment? What we have seen with the stirring of the waters is that the UK is open to funding initiatives where they have a vested interest.
And our safety and security?
We continue to believe that the Minister for National Security can bring more resources to bear and we have often wondered what impedes.
We are still jealous of the singular focus the COI received. Even now, there are moves afoot to strengthen the administrative framework of the COI to the point of having it institutionalized.
Is there any appetite in Whitehall to elevate and support our security needs especially given that the rule of law was so dear to the heart of Christendom and is a central tenet of good governance?
Imagine the march we would steal on crime if it held the level of commitment that the COI apparatus enjoys? Especially if, post the crime summit, we could be told that there was an equal push for resources to fight crime.
In the end we are all just people. And a measure of egalitarianism should attend us, especially in democracies. Unless, in concert with Orwell, (Animal Farm) “All animals are created equal but some are more equal than others.”
Certainly, the long ‘Mexican standoff’ in regard to the appointment of a Police Commissioner breached the public’s limit of expectation, patience and trust.
And now that it is over, we wonder if justice was served. For justice ‘must not only be done, but must also be seen to be done.’
Perhaps we should be told if the Kingdom has a vested interest in preparing any local with potential for the position of Police Commissioner or is that job reserved only for UK nationals, previous anomalies aside?
If there is a glass ceiling in the Police Force, that should be stated in the interest of transparency and dare we even add, good governance.
We believe Sam Smith; “The Writing’s on The Wall” but we need help to decipher its meaning.
What we know for sure is that the people of the Territory of the VI, in the words of the COI Commissioner, deserve better.
We deserve to have our voices heard. We deserve to be treated with respect and decency. We expect to be rewarded for hard work; For we too, are people.
And we demand not only to feel safe in the BVI but to be safe. These are all attainable goals.
So, we look to those who lead us, whether through an appointment from Whitehall or by our vote, to get it right.
Our very existence is at stake.
Our Fridays are, increasingly, fraught with deep concerns for the trajectory of these islands we call home.
Happy Friday!