Trainer elated with progress of MoBay elite police team
Published:Wednesday | October 23, 2019 | 12:05 AMAdrian Frater/News Editor
WESTERN BUREAU:
When the 21-member St James police quick-response team completes its training, the unit will be equipped to tackle crime.
Veteran tutor Sergeant Uzander George McFarlane, who has been training motorcyclists in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) since 1992, said that the module, which was initially planned for three weeks, could continue for an additional three weeks to facilitate newcomers.
“I have all the confidence that they will be doing a very good job. With the training they are getting, the technology accorded to them, the machine they will be driving (the new user-friendly Yamaha 250), I am confident that they will be ready to go out there and get the job done,” said McFarlane.
SCOPE OF TRAINING
McFarlane said that the training encompasses a mix of classroom theory and on-the-ground facilitation in downtown Montego Bay.
“Things have been going extremely well. ... It has been great enthusiasm,” said the fit-looking 58-year-old McFarlane, who still participates in the JCF’s motorcycle exhibition at events such as the annual Grand Gala in the National Stadium.
“We have had a few spills in training, but it was nothing to worry about as collectively, they are doing extremely well in the various manoeuvres, and they are learning and enjoying it,” noted McFarlane, whose love for motorcycles dates back to his childhood days of riding his bicycle in his St Ann home town.
“I learned that there was a motorcycle unit in the JCF, and that was what caused me to join the organisation,” said McFarlane, who is a master at motorcycle stunts despite his age. “You can say if there was not a motorcycle unit in the force, I would not be a police officer today.”
Many stakeholders in Montego Bay, including the city’s mayor, Homer Davis, are hoping that McFarlane’s enthusiasm will rub off on the cops he is training.
“I think this patrol will be a big game changer for Montego Bay, and for that, I fully endorse the initiative … . This is the right way to go … . This strategic move by the Police High Command must be commended as it is aimed at protecting and securing the public space,” said Davis.
St James has been under a state of emergency since April 30. Six other police divisions, including the western parishes of Hanover and Westmoreland, are under the security crackdown.