ST.JOHN'S Antigua, October 7th, 2011 -- Deadlines have been set for the certification of all persons working as security guards or officers in Antigua and Barbuda.
Minister of National Security & Labour, Sen. the Hon. Dr L. Errol Cort met on Thursday with members of the Antigua Association of Private Security Providers, along with the Commissioner of Police, other top members of the Police Force, as well as Chief of Defence Staff and key members of the Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force (ABDF).
Thursday’s meeting was a follow up to prior meetings with the association, and was held to discuss the way forward in the implementation of the Private Security Registration Act and the need to move ahead with the implementation of the various tenants of the legislation.
Minister Cort in his opening address pointed to the need to establish and maintain a relationship with the police and private security forces. He said better coordinated activities between the official and private security forces will enable better management of crime.
Minister Cort reiterated that security guards need to be vetted to ensure that they are suitable for that line of work. He then went on to express his desire for a realistic deadline for the certification of security guards to be set at the end of Thursday’s meeting.
After much lively discussions, February 1st, 2012 was set as the date by which all security guards should be ready for certification and 31st July, 2012 the date by which all should be certified.
Security organizations were encouraged however to provide not only the basic levels of training for their staff, but to strive even higher. For persons to qualify for certification they must complete three stages of training; basic, intermediary and advanced. A training manual is being developed and extensive courses put in place to ready persons to pass both written and practical examinations.
At the close of the meeting Minister Cort expressed his commitment for continued dialogue with the security bodies in an effort to better deal with the issue of crime in the country and to engage them closely in dealing with criminal elements.
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