Minister Bastienne visits police head quarters: ‘We need to make things happen’ |04 February 2015

After having been sworn in as the new Minister for Home Affairs before President James Michel at State House on Monday morning, Charles Bastienne said that upon appointing him, the president had urged that he and his colleagues work to “make things happen”.

The short phrase seems to have become the minister’s new motto and guiding philosophy, as he has reminded members of the police force.

“We need to make things happen,” he told senior police officers when he met them at the police headquarters yesterday morning. This was during the first of a series of visits which the minister is currently conducting of departments under his ministry. Those include the prison, immigration and civil status.

Present at yesterday’s meeting were the police’s most senior officers including Commissioner Ernest Quatre, Deputy Commissioner Vernon Hunter, Assistant Commissioners Reginald Elizabeth and Godfra Hermitte, special advisor to the commissioner, Chief Superintendent Guy Roucou and heads of the different police sections.

The home affairs minister was welcomed by Commissioner Quatre who declared his appreciation for the visit which he said would familiarise the new minister with police work.

He indeed briefed him on the different police sections, especially on the new structure launched at the beginning of the year.
The different heads of section also had the opportunity to talk to the minister about their respective responsibilities and duties.

The minister responsible for police on his part declared that he had made it his priority to visit the police headquarters on only his second day in office.
“The police are in everybody’s eyes. You are everyday under scrutiny. It is therefore necessary to have a good police force which ensures the security of the country. We need to work together to make it happen,” he said.

He added that with the new structure put into place by his predecessor Minister Joël Morgan, he is confident that this will really happen and that the public will as a result value the duty of the police officers.

He concluded that with the wealth of experience he sees in the police force, he has no doubt that they will deliver what is expected of them: A professional police force which replies to the expectations of the people.

Minister Bastienne took the opportunity to thank Minister Morgan for the good job done in modernising the police force and rendering it more efficient. As part of the Cabinet reshuffle which was announced by President Michel last week, Mr Morgan has now been given the portfolio of Foreign Affairs and Transport.