By Mark N. Mengonfia
Former Police Chief of Minneapolis, United States of America Medaria Arrandondo says there is hope for the Liberia National Police to depict the current challenges.
“I see that goodwill, I see that momentum, I see that hope in Liberia now and so I want to do what I can to help support the Honorable IG in moving his vision forward,” the former police IG said.
Arradondo or Dondo as he is affectionately called, was Chief of Police during the high-profile murder of George Floyd and subsequent widespread protests in the United States of America.
At that time, all four officers involved later directly addressed the family of George Floyd, stating that his position that all four officers involved were at fault and he was awaiting charges from the county attorney.
Arradondo came to Liberia in July of this year under the leadership of Gregory O.W. Coleman. After his assessment of the LNP, he outlined findings and reported the same to the LNP, Coleman.
But the Police boss sought to have Arradondo invited again to present his findings to the LNP and partners of Liberia as means of raising support for LNP to address findings of the report. Part of his findings is that the 159 monthly pay for the LNP officers is unable to meet the basic needs of families of men and women in uniform.
According to him, it lowers morale, brings about a culture of corruption, difficulty in recruiting, hiring and retention.
“IGP Coleman has publicly brought this matter to the light and is working within the framework of the government to address it” Arradondo told the partners and diplomats who graced the presentation of the assessment report at a local hotel in Sinkor.
He said one of the things they experience in the US is that, for any police to be successful, it has to have the trust of its people.
Rando said there are many professions that are judged by the body of their work but only in the police that when one mistake is made, it jeopardizes the trust of the people, it can have a devastating impact on the force and rollback gains made over the years.
According to him, from experiences he has learnt in America and seeing what Liberia Police Inspector General is doing is building his vision and foundation that are based on trust.
“All the leadership team is promoting trust; they know that is the only way to move the country forward” he said.
He added, “You do not see the president walking in your communities, you probably do not see his Excellency walking in your neighborhood many of the time. It is men and women who wear their uniforms that you are going to engage with most and so they need to build those relationships, need to be legitimacy and need to be trusting to move forward.”
He said the prospects for the Liberia National Police is high stating that, “As I mentioned in my remarks, even with all the challenges the men and women of the LNP are experiencing, they continue to show-up each and every day to serve their communities.”
He said goodwill is great, “But they need more than goodwill, but they need the support of people in the government, private sector leaders, build relationships with the young people and it is going to take everyone to help support this work moving forward.”
He said, “By the way, no organization is perfect. There’s going to be time for setbacks, but that’s not when you walk away from the table when those things occur and you have to have the courage to move forward.”
The former police Chief said he sees high hopes and the momentum is high in the LNP. “My simple message is this, we have to see all that is necessary. I wish there was a society in which we will never need police, a society where we will never harm one another you know, where our elders and children will be respected and protected.”
He added, “Unfortunately, we are human beings and imperfect so we are going to need a good police service, but also need our communities to come together to build that trust and relationship and also not only for today, but for the next generations.”
Police Inspector General, Gregory O.W. Coleman said, “My preform gratitude to you, Chief Rando for the insights and recommendation. It provides a clear map in advancing the agenda of the LNP.”
He indicated that they have had their share of trial and tribulation, “The gaps you identified are real and we continue to do everything with nothing.” According to the police IG, a lot of people present that they care but when things go wrong, it is the police that show up. He promised to build a professional police force notwithstanding the challenges.
The post “I See Hope, Goodwill, Momentum” appeared first on New Republic Liberia News.
