Thu | Apr 25, 2024

SAJ briefs Police Commissioner on Newport West security concerns

Published:Tuesday | January 19, 2021 | 12:06 AM
Listening intently: Commissioner of Police Major General Antony Anderson (second right) and his team met with representatives of the Shipping Association of Jamaica (SAJ) on Thursday, January 14, to discuss security and traffic arrangements at the port com
Contributed
Listening intently: Commissioner of Police Major General Antony Anderson (second right) and his team met with representatives of the Shipping Association of Jamaica (SAJ) on Thursday, January 14, to discuss security and traffic arrangements at the port community. Pictured at the meeting that took place after a tour of the community are (from left): Mark Williams, Kingston Wharves Limited CEO and managing committee member of the SAJ; Charles Johnston, immediate past president of the SAJ; William Brown, president of the SAJ, and Deputy Commissioner of Police Clifford Blake.

Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson and members of his senior team visited the offices of the Shipping Association of Jamaica (SAJ) on Thursday, January 14, and toured Newport West to observe and discuss security and traffic arrangements in the port community.

During the tour, Commissioner Anderson and his team viewed the issues that led to the meeting – improper parking of chassis, containers and hire vehicles on the roadways and sidewalks; unlawfully operating cookshops, bars and service shops on the sidewalks; and the non-observance of gazetted one-way systems and parking signs.

The commissioner was accompanied by Deputy Commissioner Clifford Blake; Senior Superintendent Wayne Cameron, who heads the Ports Division; Deputy Superintendent Tanisha Ellison, the commissioner’s staff officer; and Deputy Superintendent Lorraine Elliston, head of the Newport West police post. They met with SAJ President William Brown; immediate past president, Charles Johnston, SAJ board member; Kingston Wharves Limited CEO Mark Williams; and SAJ CEO Trevor Riley.

The meeting discussed the general security situation in the business community surrounding the port of Kingston and the management of traffic in Newport West, including parking. SAJ representatives also discussed with the police team the potential to supplement the efforts of the police by the naming of district constables drawn from employers in Newport West, as well as joint police-private security patrols.

Anderson and his team undertook to work with all stakeholders, including the vendors and the property owners, the SAJ, Port Authority of Jamaica, the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Council, and the National Works Agency to find mutually acceptable solutions that will improve the traffic and security management in Newport West.

The Shipping Association of Jamaica is registered under the Trade Union Act of Jamaica and is a service provider to the ports, as well as a member-based organisation of terminal operators, stevedoring contractors and shipping agents. The association works closely with government agencies and the private sector to promote sustainability and growth in the shipping industry.