Police Commissioner says ‘I ain’t going nowhere’ after leak suggested early retirement

By Aaron Humes: The fate of Commissioner of Police Chester Williams often seems to be hanging by a thread – whenever someone like the Leader of the Opposition Moses “Shyne” Barrow isn’t calling for his head after a spike in crime, his immediate bosses are being asked whether he should hang it up.

The latest example started with reports that at the weekly commanders’ meeting on Monday at Queen Street Police Station in Belize City, Williams informed he would proceed on pre-retirement leave on December 1 – just over a month away.

But no sooner than the news had leaked to sections of the press than the Commissioner lashed back in a voice message that was also leaked to Channel 7 News, in which he reportedly said: “It is such a shame that we have a conference with senior command and nothing said in there can be kept confidential. [Yet] when the lower ranks leak information [or] act ill-disciplined, we want to punish them. What a disgrace. Some of you people really need to be ashamed of yourselves, honestly.”

And in speaking with Channel 5 News later in the day in San Pedro Town, the Commissioner confirmed it was an object lesson for his fellows: “…when you want to find out things and find out who is leaking information that should not be leaked, you say things in certain people’s presence to see what they are going to say…I just did it to see who would have run with it and so thought, so [it] happened that someone ran with it and went to the media. Again, this goes to show that senior police officers who should learn to keep things confidential are not keeping things confidential and that is one of the problems that we have in the public service that needs to be addressed. So, to answer your question, I ain’t going nowhere.”

While that is a damning indictment of the top brass in the Police, to say the least, the Commissioner went on to say that while he is still some ways away from 55, the age of retirement, he has been thinking of moving on: “I do have in mind [to leave the police department and venture into other things eventually], but I am still looking at certain things before I make my move. I don’t intend to remain commissioner until I am fifty-five, that is too long. And so, I do have other aspirations and whenever I see the right time then I [will] make the move. Until then, I remain where I am.” He also cheekily referenced the Mesopotamia division when asked if politics is one of those aspirations.

But whenever he does, Minister of Home Affairs Kareem Musa told reporters separately, the Government will be ready: “There always has to be a succession plan within any organization and particularly within the Belize Police Department; that is something that myself, the prime minister and cabinet we have had discussions regarding that type of succession plan. As you know we currently have three deputies that are in place, deputy [Aaron] Guzman, deputy [Dr Richard] Rosado, and deputy [Bart] Jones so we do have very competent individuals who can take over the reins whenever that time does arise…”

It is to be noted that there is a court case filed concerning whether Dr Rosado was properly elevated to the post and the seniority between the trio, while Guzman has been tipped for retirement.

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