It cannot be mandatory for police officers to wear bullet proof vests, if we do not have the supply, acting Commissioner of Police, Stephen Williams told TTRN this morning. Its been an issue of supply and procurement over the years, he added, in response to our questions about the availability of bullet proof vests for cops on the beat, the lack of which was highlighted by the shooting of 21 year old PC Ryan Lochan, who went to investigate a robbery at the Vietnam Bar in Barrackpore on January 2nd. We have purchased 2500 vests, the bulk of which have been utilised. The only vests that remain are the ones that are very small, he said, unable to say on how many are unusable. But the good news is that tenders will be open next week for the supply of two sets of bullet proof vests. We need different levels for the kind of firepower that we are facing, Mr Williams said. The public procurement process is a very long one and there are built in protocols that stymie it and in recent years we have had massive recruitment, so once again there is the issue of demand. Never in its history has the T&T Police Service supplied all its officers with bullet proof vests, he said. While admitting that bullet proof vests can only provide some level of protection, Williams said some police units are specially trained to handle consistent confrontation on the streets with gunfire. When you choose policing as a calling you know it is high risk. You may be confronted with gunfire which may shake you up, but it will not cause widespread panic. There are police officers who have been shot and injured and killed, in the line of duty. At the end of the day, I hope the public appreciates what our officers are exposed to, while on the beat, he ended.
Posted on: Wed, 07 Jan 2015 16:26:59 +0000
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