By Mark DaCosta-The Alliance For Change (AFC) has delivered a sharp critique of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) regime, accusing the PPP of deliberately fostering corruption within the Guyana Police Force (GPF) as part of a political strategy aimed at ensuring loyalty and control.
According to the AFC, the PPP government’s failure to address the significant disparity between the country’s rising oil revenues and the stagnant salaries of police officers is no accident. Instead, the AFC argues, it is a strategic decision designed to keep police officers dependent on the government for their financial well-being and, therefore, politically loyal.
The AFC accuses the PPP of purposefully creating a climate where police officers are left with no option but to engage in corrupt practices. This, they argue, is a calculated political move to secure the loyalty of the police force, which is essential to the PPP’s survival in power. In their statement, the AFC asserts that the government has chosen to incentivise loyalty through corruption rather than offering fair salaries.
“The continuation of low salaries for our policemen in a time of major revenues from oil has a political logic about it and bears a relationship to the PPP’s corruption,” the AFC states. By paying police officers poorly, the government is effectively forcing them to seek additional income through illicit means, which creates a cadre of officers indebted to the regime.
This strategy, the AFC states, is deliberate. The party argues that low salaries prevent police officers from having the financial independence to challenge the government, leaving them reliant on the corrupt practices that have come to characterise the force. Officers who engage in these practices are rewarded with wealth, while those who refuse are either sidelined, transferred, or punished.
The AFC points to the case of Assistant Commissioner Calvin Brutus as a prime example of this corruption. Brutus, a senior police officer with deep ties to the GPF’s internal workings, has come under intense scrutiny in recent months as he faces numerous criminal charges related to fraud and money laundering. His case, according to the AFC, is not an isolated incident but a reflection of a much larger, systemic issue within the police force, one that the PPP is complicit in maintaining.
The Brutus case has garnered significant attention both locally and internationally. Brutus, who had already been charged with numerous counts of fraud and money laundering, appeared in court again on November 15, in the face of 201 charges, all linked to the illicit accumulation of wealth. His assets have been revealed to include properties worth approximately $300 million and joint bank accounts containing more than $500 million.
The investigation into Brutus began in July 2024 when the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) launched a probe into the GPF’s Credit Union, where Brutus had significant dealings. The inquiry was expanded after the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) provided additional information. His wife has also been charged, and a number of their joint bank accounts have been frozen.
Brutus is currently out on substantial bail. He faces a return to court in December 2024 in relation to the older charges, and in January 2025 to answer to the new charges.
For the AFC, the Brutus case is emblematic of the PPP’s broader approach to law enforcement. They argue that by creating a system where police officers can engage in corruption without fear of repercussions, the PPP is effectively buying the loyalty of the force, ensuring that officers remain loyal to the government in exchange for the financial rewards that come with corruption.
The AFC’s statement offers a cogent and well-reasoned explanation for the PPP’s policies surrounding police remuneration and corruption. The opposition party suggests that the PPP’s low-pay, high-corruption strategy is not a mistake or oversight but a carefully calculated move designed to achieve specific political outcomes.
The party strongly implies that this system serves to undermine any opposition to the PPP. By keeping the police force aligned with the government through these corrupt practices, the PPP can stifle dissent, prevent protests, and neutralise any potential challenges to its rule. As the AFC noted in its statement, “This method provides the means to ensure regime loyalty without having to pay good salaries, and it guarantees the means to ferret out every beneficiary who fail to remain loyal.”
In light of these allegations, the AFC has called for an independent, international investigation into the Guyana Police Force. The party is urging both the Guyanese public and the international community to apply pressure on the PPP administration to allow for a thorough, transparent inquiry into the police force’s internal operations. The AFC argues that without such an investigation, the culture of corruption within the GPF will continue unchecked.
