Not all security guards are brainless

THE EDITOR: This is to inform the many people of Trinidad and Tobago who look down on security officers, and to open their eyes to the fact that security officers in the country are not all brainless. I am an estate constable attached to one of the government ministries for many years and I have first hand knowledge of the many officers who are very educated. Some of them have entered the service with academic certificates having as many as nine passes, and over the years many have gone on to study in different institutions of higher learning such as the University of the West Indies, Cipriani Labour College and others, and have obtained certificates, diplomas and other achievements.

On many occasions while interacting with staff members in the public service many officers and myself have experienced a lot of criticism and other mean acts by public servants and even some members of the public because we believe that they are of the opinion that once you are a security officer you are brainless and stupid; but I am here to tell them that there are a lot of officers who are more academically inclined than many of them who sit behind desks with in and out dips. We the security officers in the various organisations are asking people to get their facts straight before making assumptions and stereotyping the men and women who are employed in the security services of this country. The people need to take into consideration that maybe the jobs that some of them would have liked to be employed in were not available at the time they were seeking employment and this job may have been the quickest and easiest to obtain. Finally, I am very happy and proud to say that many security officers including myself have achieved their goals in life and are doing fine because they are gainfully employed and have put their money to good use.

J FORTUNE
D’Abadie