The main Opposition, We Invest in Nationhood party has issued a call for Police Commissioner, Clifton Hicken, and Fire Chief, Gregory Wickham to step down from their posts and take up their overdue retirement, while making way for a process to to select a new Commissioner and Fire Chief to begin.
In a statement today, the WIN party said the situation to have both men in the senior roles while beyond the retirement age is not only troubling, but sets a dangerous pattern that undermines the integrity of the Disciplined Services.
“In the Guyana Police Force, we have a Commissioner, Mr. Clifton Hicken, who reached the mandatory retirement age of 55 on July 22, 2023, yet continues to serve through extensions granted by the Executive. While the law may allow for extensions up to age 60, the real question is not legality, it is fairness, transparency, and opportunity. Why has this position not been properly regularised when there are capable, qualified officers within the Force who have worked their entire careers in anticipation of upward mobility?” WIN questioned.
The party said a similar situation exists in the Guyana Fire Service, where the Acting Chief Fire Officer Gregory Wickham, who is beyond the retirement age remains in the position.
The WIN party expressed concern that if the trend continues, promotions will be affected and the morale of younger officers will be daunted.
The party has also raised concerns over matters relating to the Guyana Prison Service, where Director of Prisons Gladwin Samuels was sent on administrative leave for approximately four months. He was reassigned when the leave ended, and since then Nicklon Elliott has been acting as the Prison Director.
The party questioned whether there is a move to control the country’s law enforcement and security architecture.
“Are these extensions and acting appointments being used to keep leadership dependent and controlled? Are promotions being quietly stalled to favour preferred individuals? Is the system being shaped, not for professionalism, but for political convenience?” the party asked.
The party said it is calling on the President to take immediate action to ensure the Police Commissioner and the Fire Chief take up their retirement, so that he can begin a process of appointing new leaders through meaningful consultation with the Opposition Leader.
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