complaints surfacing almost every week, The Royal Gazette has attempted to take a closer look at the issues facing the men and women in blue and how, if at all, they are being addressed. This will be done in a series of articles this week.

*** Finding a Bermudian Police Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner has been hampered by a lack of training under the old regime.

The Commissioner said part of the problem with finding suitable Bermudian replacements for the top posts was that under the old system, there never was a learning environment.

Consequently, senior officers in the Service had not had the greatest opportunity to develop leadership skills.

This was just one of the reasons Police Commissioner Jean-Jacques Lemay gave for low morale within the force.

Working without a contract in poor conditions with a shortage of staff could also be contributing to the low morale issue, Mr. Lemay admitted.

He was commenting after a former female police officer complained to The Royal Gazette about a number of concerns with regard to the status of the Police Service and the conduct of its officers.

The former officer, who did not wish to be identified, told The Royal Gazette that morale amongst officers was exceptionally low.

And two other former male officers echoed her sentiments with one adding: "Morale is at the bottom and plummeting.'' They cited a number of reasons for this including lack of support from superior officers, abuse from members of the public, and very poor working conditions.

One of the former officers said: "It was the worst feeling in the world being out on the street because you were facing a hostile public but also had to worry about your superiors stabbing you in the back.'' He explained this comment by saying that the superior officers seemed to feel that in order to justify their position as supervisors, they had to come down hard on constables.

Lemay admits morale is low Police constables who are trying to do a good job are even more likely to be "reprimanded'' by their superiors, he said, perhaps because the superior officers fear their ambition.

"The result is that there is no reason why a Pc. should try to excel,'' he added.

The other former officer agreed, saying that the attitude from command was one of "us against them'' and that the officer on the beat is not looked after.

Mr. Lemay identified four reasons why morale is low.

Firstly, pay negotiations have been outstanding since 1997 and there is currently no Police contract in place.

He noted that the matter is currently being arbitrated and it is hoped that there will be a resolution in the near future.

The second reason for low morale is the manpower shortage and the third is the condition of the physical plant and working conditions.

The Commissioner said Hamilton Police Station had been condemned because it was infested by roaches and termites and the station in St. George's is also in need of repair.

He pointed out that a new Police station is to be built on the corner of Victoria and Court streets which will also contain a Magistrates' Court.

The fourth reason which Commissioner Lemay considered was adding to morale problems was the major underlying changes being made in the structure of the Police Service and the uncertainty about these changes.

Mr. Lemay said he understood the former officer's statement about not being supported by his superior officers and explained that a transformation of the Service from a command and control structure, where the Commissioner is the most important person, to one where the constables who are in contact with the public become the most important people was underway.

He explained that under the old system, Police constables did not ask questions; they were told to carry out orders and did not participate in the decision-making process. He added that if they made mistakes, they were reprimanded but were not applauded when they did something well.

In the new environment, however, the aim is to empower constables who will be encouraged to ask questions to make decisions and to develop leadership skills.

Under the new system, officers will be encouraged right from the start to learn problem analysis, interpersonal skills and leadership training.

Mr. Lemay admitted that certain officers in the ranks would have a problem with this approach and that these changes could lead to frustration.

Nevertheless, he said the changes were necessary and in order to communicate the changes being implemented to the manpower, he had created the Project Renewal Team headed by Ch. Insp. Roseanda Jones.

It is the task of this team to assist the Commissioner with the transformation.

Mr. Lemay said once the pay negotiations were concluded and the recruitment drive had been completed, he expected morale to improve.