Anderson: JCF looking forward to ‘fantastic results’ in 2023
Published:Wednesday | January 4, 2023 | 1:01 AMJudana Murphy/Gleaner Writer
Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson has asserted that it is important to hold a sense of optimism as Jamaica charts its way through 2023.
“The force is in a good place and is only getting better,” he said of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF). “Our JCF is growing from strength to strength. It has been proven to be a force for good in many ways, and as I moved around the country over the December period, I got a real appreciation of how many lives we have impacted positively.”
Anderson was speaking at the commissioner’s annual devotional exercise, which was held on Tuesday morning under the theme ‘Relentless Pursuit of Excellence: A Force for Good’.
The commissioner encouraged members of the JCF to see challenges as opportunities.
“When we list all of the things we want and need, there is a bigger list that we make, and that’s the list of all the things we have and are blessed by. Now, what I am suggesting and recommending is that all of us, individually and collectively, have the mindset that says, ‘We have solutions, we have opportunities and we are blessed to be here, to be in the force, blessed that we have life, health and hope’,” Anderson said.
He said that he expects “fantastic results” this year, noting that his team’s plans and changes were interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
“We pushed through in 2022 that by the end of the year, we started to see the benefits of it and set the conditions to launch in 2023, with a new energy, with a number of the things that were delayed now in place. Most importantly, we have people who are committed, people who are optimistic, people who are getting an understanding of their role and ability to influence what is around them … . When you have that, it doesn’t really matter what you lack because you have enough to move ahead and make a difference both personally and professionally,” Anderson said.
In his devotion, Area Two Assistant Chaplain, the Reverend Anthony Armstrong, charged members of the force to serve with excellence.
“The words ‘excellence’ and ‘service’ would never be the same as they are if the letter c was removed … . In 2023, our service must continue to be of excellence because we are a force for good,” he said.
In the relentless pursuit of excellence, Armstrong reasoned that members of the JCF must serve with commitment, courage and care.
“Like Daniel of the scriptures, we must remain committed to the cause, committed to the task of providing the best police service there is. We must continue to be committed to duty, serving even those who seek to put us in a negative emotional state … . We must continue to sail the sea of commitment until this lawless voyage that our country seems to be on comes to an end. We must continue to commit to God, to family, to friends, to country and we must remain steadfast,” Armstrong remarked.