Over the past years, the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF) has been actively involved in the vetting process of its officers to ensure accountability and disciplinary standards are maintained in the profession.
Commissioner of Police Verne Garde has stated that law enforcement officers uphold this procedure, while investigations into potential misconduct, including sexual misconduct, are reviewed and sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
“The Royal Saint Lucia Police Force has a policy with regards to vetting …and vettings never expire, they are ongoing,” COP Garde revealed at a recent media briefing.
For instance, he explained, the RSLPF conducts the requisite initial vetting for recruits “and continues to vet these officers along the way.”
Garde said part of the vetting process for recruits and senior officers involves a polygraph. “Every member of the police force who enters the organization is required to take a polygraph and in most instances, two years after we try to update that polygraph.”
Moreover, he said that the officers above the rank of inspector must be vetted before assuming higher ranks, while security agencies are vetted by the Special Branch unit.
Garde stated that with senior officers moving into gazetted positions – and above the rank of Inspector “the issue of the vetting and polygraph is required.”
He added that between last September to date, the RSLPF undertook “two cohorts of vetting”, with 100 officers vetted in the first instance and for the next stage, 62 officers took the polygraph test. In the second phase, 131 officers were vetted.
Furthermore, Garde articulated: “Within the next two weeks, starting from June 17, we will be vetting 200 officers …as we proceed into the next stage of the vetting process.”
The police commissioner revealed that the RSLPF collaborates with the Regional Security System (RSS), which is the independent agency responsible for that vetting.
Experts identify vetting as the process of performing a background check on someone before offering them employment, conferring an award, or doing fact-checking before making any decision. In addition, in intelligence gathering, assets are vetted to determine their usefulness.
He declared: “Saint Lucia is the leading Caribbean island …that actively participates in that level of vetting.”
Garde stated that during his tenure as a law reinforcement officer and with acknowledgments from other regional officers it has been determined “that Saint Lucia is committed to these settings.”
Summing up, the police commissioner stated: “By the end of this year, we want to ensure that we have a little more than two-thirds of the officers at the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force are not only vetted, but vetted to the level of taking the polygraph, either at a confidential secret or top-secret level.”
He continued, “Every officer who is required to go to the sensitive departments, such as the Central Intelligence Unit is 100% vetted. Everyone who goes into the Special Branch is 100%, and everyone who goes into the SIA – Special Investigating Authority is 100% vetted. We also intend to obtain a 100% vetting for persons in the Major Crime unit …and the Marine Unit has a 100% vetting.”