By Louise Jobe
The Gambia Immigration Department (GID) and the Gambia Police Force (GPF), have recently concluded a two day workshop on the institutional policy of Security Sector Reforms’ (SSR) on Wednesday December 24th 2019, at a local Hotel.
The program which is founded by the UNDP to support Government efforts in SSR, was officially lunched by President Adama Barrow on September 12th 2017.
Tamsir Jassey, the consultant from the UNDP said the workshop is to aid the GPF and GID créate an institutional Policy for the SSR process.
According to Jassey, this institutional policy is important to bring back quality profesional standards in the operations of these Forces, after being under the tutelage of the former president for the past twenty two years; that during that period, there were no written guidelines for Police and Immigration operations as standard profesional Law Enforcement Agencies. Jassey said part of the SSR is to create institutional policies that will guide the day to day standard profesional operations of the Police and Immigration Forces in reflection to the Laws of the Gambia.
“I have had the opportunity to work with bright young officers in both the police and immigration departments and they have given me the impression that they have understand indept what these policies are and how they want them to be established in their institutions,” he said.
Jassey urged the government to examine each policy ánd adopt it by creating standard operating procedures as guidance for the immigration and police operations in the country.
On his part ASP Modou Lamin Jallow who is also the legal adviser of the GPF said the purpose of the validation workshop is to have a legal and regulatory framework policy and strategy to better enhance security governance in line with democracy and respect for human rights; that one of the recommendation in assessing the SSR report is the presence of an obsolete or none existence legal and regulatory framework; that the task is geared towards accessing a consolidated security governance for the specific institutions of the GPF and GID.
ASP Jallow said this will help the Police and Immigration officers to be fully equipped with the knowledge on how to do their job effeciently and effectively.
