Panday not sure about integrity forms for cops

Leader of the Opposition, Basdeo Panday, is worried about the safety of any police officer who might be called on to “rat” on his colleagues as proposed by the Government. Newsday yesterday reported that police officers have been told to fill out declaration forms of their personal integrity and to submit to a lie detector test. The forms ask officers whether they or their colleagues use narcotics; belong to any organisation undermining parliamentary democracy; have ever been arrested; have ever seen a psychologist/psychiatrist; have vision or hearing problems; use excessive alcohol; or been offered or received a bribe by a drug-dealer or gun-runner.

Panday said any such monitoring of police officers must balance the need for integrity in the Police Service with the rights of the individuals. For example, asking officers if their co-workers use drugs. Panday remarked, “It is tantamount to asking members of the Police Service to blow the whistle on their colleagues. Is this admirable or not? What protection would be offered to such people (ie whistleblowers) whose rights were being put to the test in that way?” As to the order to disclose any counselling by a psychiatrist or psychologist, Panday said, “We have to find the right balance. Police officers are human beings and like everyone, they have rights that must be protected and not violated.” The forms ask officers whether they belong to any group that advocates the undermining of parliamentary democracy by political and other means. Panday commented, “Does that mean they can’t belong to a political party? I’m not sure. While it is important to have policemen of integrity, one has also got to look at the issue of the abuse of (officers’) human rights and not dismiss it lightly.”

He added that while officers should not show any political bias on the job, they did have rights and freedoms that should not be violated.  Panday was incredulous over the Police Service asking whether an officer had ever been arrested, remarking, “I would have thought they would have known that already.” Told that no crooked officer would ever declare on the forms that he had received a bribe by a drug-dealer or gun-runner, Panday responded, “It seems a rather curious question. “One has to look at it as a package and get a balance between the rights of the individual with the need to have a trustworthy Police Service.”

Given that a lie-detector test was recognised in policing in the USA but not the UK, he was asked if he had faith in it. “It should be backed up by other evidence. It is not absolutely foolproof. That’s the kind of protection one would expect to be forthcoming if there is to be fairness in the system.” He noted that the Government had never discussed beforehand with the Opposition the introduction of these declaration forms and polygraph tests. He accepted the statement of  Police Welfare Association president, Cedric Neptune, that officers should not fill out the forms until the association knew where the information was going. Panday said, “His job is to protect his members. No one can fault him for that.”