The new Commanding Officer of Eastern Division South Side Belize City- Senior Superintendent Chester Williams continues his visits into gang ridden
communities. This evening a meet and greet was held in the Mayflower neighbourhood – known to many as Ghost Town –where more than 20 police officers
were in the area talking to residents.
Sr. Supt. Chester Williams - OC - E.D Southside
"We continue our effort in the Mayflower area. We're doing meet and greet coming back to the people of Mayflower again. Getting feedback from them as
to the effort we are doing in the area to see how they feel about the work the police is doing and at the same time to get feedback from them in
respect of those works that we're doing. I must say that this evening we are doing this in collaboration with the Belize City council and we have with
us the city planner; who is on this meet and greet with us and she and her staff are looking at the bushy lots and the relic buildings. So what we want
to do is identify those bushy lots and relic buildings and see what can be done from the city council stand point to clean the bushy lots and at the
same time to look demolishing those buildings that are in a dilapidated state in the community. So that is what we are basically doing today."
Monica Bodden
"So far how is the meet and greet going?"
Sr. Supt. Chester Williams - OC - E.D Southside
"Well it's going quite well. I must say the feedback we're getting so far is very good and I must say that tomorrow evening at 6 o'clock, we're having
a second committee meeting at the Zoi ministry church. This time the meeting will be geared towards establishing the neighbourhood watch group for the
area. So we're making great in roads in our fight to restore law and order in the Mayflower area and to make the people of this area feel pretty safe.
So, if we should have the chance to have that neighbourhood watch group; we will then put the committee in care of its residence, so then they'll
become their own keeper. Notwithstanding that thought the police will stay remain in the area to ensure that no one comes in and try to create havoc in
the area. We're also in the recruitment stage of the police youth cadet in the area. What we want to do also is to establish a youth cadet core for
Mayflower. We have a lot of children running around the area, have nothing to do after school; it's a holiday right now having nothing to do. So we
want to keep them occupied in terms of having them become members of the police youth cadet core and try to train them and see how best we could assist
the parents in instilling come level of discipline in these children; so that they become less susceptible to be recruited by persons who are involved
in criminal activities."
"I try to embrace the positive feedback and the negative feedback I listen to them but at the same time I try to turn the negative to a positive. I do
not expect that everything would go smooth sailing; that everyone would agree with whatever it is that we are doing. We know yes that, things have been
done in a certain way and some people believe in the mundane but I believe that if you see something that is not working then it should be changed. So
what we are trying to do is to change the atmosphere of policing within the police department. Not only Southside because whatever is being done is
being embraced by our minster; because he too wants to see crime within the country of Belize reduced. He think by community policing efforts it can be
done. So that is what we're doing; the negative feedbacks we take them and we turn them into positive ones. If a person says something that is
negative, they have a reason for saying that and we must respect their opinion and see how best we could improve whatever it that is we are doing."
And those weren't the only police tours happening in the Belize District today – later on we'll show you the police minister touring Belize Rural – and
the special tenderloin steak that commander Edward Broaster cooked up for him…
Email
Print