Trust, confidence are at the heart of effective policing

IG Japheth Koome. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

Policing standards are without a doubt a major contributor to the building of trust and confidence within the community.

Properly established and audited standards touch every piece of police practice. I am of the view that if the standards established by the Ministry are not adhered to, then the legitimacy of that police organisation is suspect.

The major challenge policing is facing world over is the public's trust and confidence in policing. Without which, the system fails and the legitimacy of police in a democratic society ceases. And once legitimacy is lost, there is lawlessness and crime. And it takes a long time to get trust and confidence back.

The building of trust and confidence is accomplished in many ways, but I would like to address three. The first is governance. An incredibly important concept in democratic policing is that of independence of the police. Independence from political pressure and control.

This is not to say the government doesn't have an important role; It must create legislation that establishes the framework of how policing should function, and the government should approve strategic plans and police budgets. These are the accountability and governance pieces that are so important to build trust and confidence.

Police independence is the principle that operational decisions of the police chief should be made independent of governance. Policing standards are a major contributor to the building of trust and confidence with the community.

Properly established and audited standards touch every piece of police practice. If the standards established by the Ministry are not adhered to, then the legitimacy of that police organisation is suspect.

The public will not tolerate excessive use of force. I teach a concept to young police recruits that should guide their behaviour. It is a simple statement to remember and it goes something like this.... Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Malpractice and misuse of that power is a breach of that trust that you have been given by the community.

The second is foundational education. The police in most parts of the world do not meet the clear definition of a profession. We are not self regulating, we don't have an academic faculty that conducts research on our behalf, we don't have continuing required professional development and we don't have a basic educational degree required to enter the profession of policing. This is not to say that we should not strive to be professional.

The last element is community policing. I have been a proponent of community policing as a policing practice. I believe the police are no different than the public, we live in the same community. Policing is about people and relationships and the more the police build and foster relationships with the community the stronger the concept of trust.

-Mr Abele is Chief of Police Taber Town, Canada. He visted Siaya County last week.