Majority of JCF’s Canine Division staff uncertified
Inspection by oversight body reveals challenges in training and facilities
With a mandate to prevent the transportation of drugs through Jamaica’s borders, searching for firearms, ammunition, and locating missing persons, the Canine Division of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), up to late last year, had only one member of staff certified as a canine trainer.
The Canine Division carries out other duties such as spent casing and explosives detection.
In its quarterly newsletter, the Police Civilian Oversight Authority (PCOA) said when it carried out an inspection of the Canine Division in November 2023, it found that 31 of the 61 members of staff were trained as canine handlers but not certified. At the same time, 27 personnel from the Canine Division did not receive canine handlers’ training.
The PCOA, which is an oversight body of the JCF, said that while canines at the Canine Division of the JCF are for the most part satisfactorily housed and cared for, the majority of the personnel assigned to the division are not certified as trainers or canine handlers.
This was one of several key findings from a thematic inspection conducted by the PCOA team at the division in November last year. The division is a specialised unit within the JCF that focuses on the training and handling of canines.
In what appears to be a dearth of certified canine trainers in Jamaica, President of the Jamaica Kennel Club Jalil Dabdoub told The Gleaner that even at the sport level, the club has not been able to meet the requirements of the international bodies because the expertise is not available in Jamaica.
“There are a lot of ‘trainers’ in Jamaica, but when you see what is done in Europe and the United States, you realise it is a totally different game we are talking about,” he said.
Dabdoub said a few years ago, the Kennel Club lobbied security companies locally and reached out to the JCF and the military to source expertise from overseas to establish courses locally in canine handling and certification as canine trainers.
He argued that if all the players pooled their resources together, it would be cost effective to recruit expertise in canine training from overseas.
The Kennel Club has a registry of purebred dogs. The club offers classes to train owners of dogs so that the animals do not become a nuisance to society.
UNSUITABLE HOUSING AND WORKING CONDITIONS
During its inspection of the Canine Division in November, the PCOA team also found that the housing and working conditions provided for the personnel at the Sangster International Airport, divisional headquarters at Harman Barracks, and Norman Manley International Airport were not suitable, owing to limited space and inadequate furniture.
In the case of the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St James, the location for the personnel was adequate, however, the furniture was in a poor state, and cracks were seen along the walls of the guardroom.
The PCOA reported that there were missing plasterboards from the ceiling and water marks, indicating that there was water leakage.
The police oversight body also revealed that at the Summit Station Barracks in Montego Bay, the five rooms in the complex were in a deplorable condition, requiring renovation.
“In each room, there were several missing window blades as well as the ceiling had several holes, showing signs of termite infestation and leakage. Three of the rooms had containers catching waste from a broken sewage line in the ceiling,” the PCOA said.
At the Divisional Headquarters located on the Harman Barracks compound, the ceiling of the barracks and bathroom were in need of repair, the PCOA added.
“The AC unit in the guardroom was out of service, and the windows were sealed with Plexiglas, resulting in poor ventilation and intense heat. The barrack rooms were small and had defective lighting fixtures. The toilets in the bathrooms were malfunctioning. The kitchen was in a deplorable condition. Rust and corrosion were visible on the sink and refrigerator,” the PCOA revealed.
Further, the PCOA said there was raw sewage running from the South Camp Correctional Centre on to the compound of the divisional headquarters, resulting in a stench that affected the health of staff.