Head of the unit, Assistant Commissioner of Police Clifford Blake; acting Deputy Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington and a contingent of senior officers guided Senator Dwight Nelson through the ancient and dilapidated barrack areas and through the hellishly hot offices and classroom buildings.

The officers presented their grocery list of concerns to Nelson, among which the improvement of the barrack accommodations, Blake shared, is the most urgent priority.

One woman constable, during a question-and-answer session, begged Nelson for assistance with her barrack - not only because it was infested with roaches, but because when it rained, the only way to sleep comfortably was for all the officers to join their beds together.

Certain condemnation

Some of the wooden structures, constructed as far back as the early 1950s, almost certainly could not escape condemnation had they not been the property of the state.

Nelson said he would have to re-examine his budget. If it is not possible to fund improvements from the Budget, Nelson said he would have to look towards multilaterals or other sources of funding.

The second priority of the Mobile Reserve unit, Blake told The Gleaner, would be the establishment of a joint-operation centre; and, then third, the construction of additional office spaces.

andrew.wildes@gleanerjm.com