New police chief pledges to restore public confidence in the force
POLICE CHIEF Michalis Papageorgiou yesterday pledged to purge the force of its rotten apples and restore public confidence after a series of revelations and scandals revealing widespread corruption rocked the force.
Speaking in his first public address since taking over from Iacovos Papacostas, the new chief was keen to stress there would be no tolerance of corrupt cops in the force.
“Our first concern is and will continue to be to purge the police force and restore public confidence in the police,” said Papageorgiou.
Other top targets for the new leadership include making citizens feel safer, raising the profile of the force and creating better conditions of law and order, he said.
Confidence in the police is at an all time low, following a succession of revelations regarding police corruption, from the saga of the escaped convict Antonis Kitas to the murder of a policeman believed to be involved with loan sharks and most recently, the arrest of a policeman who allegedly tried to buy a rocket launcher.
“The new leadership acknowledges that there are some police members who act outside the framework of legality. However, we all know that the problem was not created in recent years and will take some time to improve the situation,” said Papageorgiou.
“We understand that this task is not easy. However, we commit ourselves to working hard, honestly and objectively in order to battle our evil side, to improve our own house and to upgrade the image that every citizen of our Republic has of us,” he added.
The new chief called on the special committee appointed by Cabinet to improve the police academy to complete its work and raise criteria for admission, thereby reducing the risk of hiring corrupt and inappropriate members.
One of his goals is to ensure that each citizen and police member is treated with respect and without discrimination to ensure the human rights of all, regardless of gender, race, religion, colour or ethnicity.
“We understand that the road is not paved with rose petals. However, we hope and are optimistic that, through education and training of all staff, our own example, and through a system of regular and effective monitoring of all our members, we will improve significantly.”
Excellence would be rewarded in the force, said Papageorgiou, adding that measures would be taken against those who failed to live up to the standards set, including the option of dismissal. “Corrupt members have no place in the force,” he said.
The police chief called on police members and citizens “to help us identify and expel any corrupt members from the force”, adding: “There is no room for the least bit of tolerance. Tolerance will now be seen as complicity.”
Asked where members of the public should go with vital information against corrupt cops, Papageorgiou referred to the direct part he played in getting the alleged rocket launcher buyer arrested.
He said the public should use its judgement in deciding who to trust but that he was personally available to citizens if they had concrete evidence against other police members. Asked whether this was the right channel to use, he replied:
“We are working on a system, give us some time.”
The new leadership listed its top priorities as being: road safety, drugs, traditional forms of crime, illegal immigration and corruption within the force. Papageorgiou also referred to new forms of crime like electronic gambling, child pornography, internet fraud and usury.
He called for new legal measures to tackle usury, saying the police force has been aware of the problem of loan sharks for some time, which is why it has arranged a meeting with the Attorney-general this Tuesday to discuss the matter.
