Mr. Winston Felix, former Deputy Commissioner of Police, was on Monday formally sworn in as Commissioner of Police.
Today we publish the comments of citizens on the appointment of Commissioner Felix.
1) EUGENE KING - Minibus operator: All eyes will be on Mr. Felix now that he has assumed the position of Commissioner of Police at such a crucial time. Guyana is really in troubled times. There are matters requiring his attention that need to be cleared up urgently. We hope he does not fail the nation. We have been hearing good things about him, but I think that his first wrong move was to accept the baton of office from an outgoing Commissioner dressed in a civilian suit. The occasion was a ceremonial one, and demanded Mr. Mc Donald to be attired in no less than the Police uniform. If you go back to the ceremony where Mr. Laurie Lewis handed over the baton to Mr. Mc Donald on September 3, 2001, you will notice that they were both dressed in full uniform.
2) LINDON JOHN - Minibus Driver: I think that Mr. Felix, as the new Commissioner of Police has a huge task before him, as it relates to policing and the law, and I wish him well. Mr. Felix is a well-rounded Police as Mr. Laurie Lewis said. He’s been in the force for a long time, and he’s been doing a good job. Right now I could only point him to Mr. Lloyd Barker to use as an example. But my concern is - why do they always wait until these people almost reach retirement age to appoint them? I think the first thing he should do is work at restoring the confidence of the people in the Police Force and make the Force one where young men will be proud to serve.
3) SABITREE SANKAR - Housewife: I really think that Mr. Felix should be given a try, because the way the country is going, it looks like things were out of hand in the Force. We hope that he can make the difference, and that people can now look forward to being safe in their homes and in the streets.
4) BORIS GARDENER - Minibus Conductor: I fully support the appointment of Mr. Felix as Commissioner of Police and hope he would move with haste to bring down the worrying level of crime that this country has seen in recent times. We need him to take things in hand and let the people get justice, because he was a very good man all the time.
We hope that he does not change, since any change we will accept from him would only be a change for the better.
5) AMO - Businessman: The new Commissioner will do what he has to do, and do what is possible to do as regards crime in this country. If he does the right thing, then everything will go good in this country. People are on the streets getting rob every single day and there are many violent crimes taking place. We want our streets to be safe once more. We want o know that generally citizens do not have to live in fear. We hope the new Commissioner can use his good offices to make this possible. Guyanese expect a lot him.
6) LEONIE MUNROE - Housewife: Mr. Felix assuming office was long overdue. He could have given years of good service as a good Commissioner of Police a long time ago had he been given a chance earlier. He’s there now and we wish him all the best and hope that he continues to uphold the law in good faith. Based on his record, I think that he will get the support of the ranks in the Force in getting the Force well on top of the crime situation. We also wish Mr. Mc Donald well in whatever he sets himself to do.
7) MOHAMED ALLI - Businessman: The swearing in of Mr. Winston Felix as Commissioner of Police is a step in the right direction, and I congratulate the move. At this critical juncture, what we need is someone who could do things better and bring the Force in line what is expected on good disciplined Policemen. We believe in Mr. Winston Felix to move the Force forward. One of the first things I would like to see him do is review the process of issuing gun licences, and ensure that these go only to genuinely deserving cases, and businessmen and farmers should be among the lot.
8) SHEILA FORDE - Vendor: We now have a new Commissioner, yes, and the only way we will know whether he is worth his salt is if he starts off by doing the right thing: Those who are implicated in criminal matters must be charged.