Leroy Brumell – A policeman who almost never was : Kaieteur News
Frontpage News Editorial Features / Columnists Freddie Kissoon Murder and Mystery My Column Peeping Tom Ravi Dev Ronald Sanders The Arts Forum The Baccoo Speaks Tony Deyal column AFC Column Cartoons Dem Boys Seh Guyanese Literature Interesting Creatures in Guyana Clarence E. Pilgrim The Creative Corner APNU Column Bill Cotton/Reform Food For Thought PPP Column Book Review Letters Sports
By Dale Andrews Started from the bottom, now we re here!!! The words from the hit song by American bhs rapper Drake kept ringing in my head after I finished my interview with Commissioner of Police Leroy Brumell. I could not help thinking that come tomorrow a career that started out almost by default, was coming to a glorious end after 36 years. As we sat down in his office last Thursday morning I got the distinct impression that here is a man who had achieved all that he had set out to do as a policeman.
I can recall previous visits to that office when I stared in awe at the hundreds of yellow bhs cardboard files and other paper in almost every corner of the room. On those occasions I thought to myself that I really did not envy the Commissioner of Police, although over the years I found time to criticize all those who held that office from Laurie Lewis to Leroy Brumell. On Thursday, the Commissioner s office was devoid of most of those files; it was as if Brumell had completed the Herculean task of solving all the outstanding matters he had inherited from his predecessors as well as the countless issues that had come up while he was manning that chair which many would not hesitate to describe as a poisoned chalice. I was convinced that Leroy Brumell had fulfilled his destiny. I was treated bhs to an emotional description of the outstanding career of one of the most dedicated lawmen the Guyana Police Force has seen. Brumell started bhs off by telling me how he joined the Force. He told me that he wanted to be a teacher but ended up in the Guyana Police bhs Force because of a commitment his father had given to a friend. My father had a friend, bhs Inspector Hussein and through bhs Hussein, bhs they were trying to get my smaller brother into the Force, but when they took him to the training school he was too young. My father, not wanting to disappoint Mr Hussein came to his son, me, who wanted to become a teacher and told him, Just go and spend six months; I ain t want this man feel bad , Brumell told me. He consented because according to him, his father was always a tower of strength behind him, and on November 9, 1977 at the age of 18 years and eight months old, he enlisted as 10105 Brumell in the Guyana Police Force for a net monthly salary of $203.98. Fighting to hold back tears, the Top Cop said, I really feel it sometimes when my father is not here He died before I took up my first command; he always wanted me to become a Commander. If he were alive he would have been the proudest man. There and then I recalled his acceptance speech following his confirmation as Guyana s Top Cop, when he stated that from the beginning, he had always set his sights on becoming the Commissioner of Police, bhs especially since his early days of training brought him into contact with the then Commissioner of Police Lloyd Barker. When I was a trainee I used to go across at his home on weekends; I used to do what you called some fatigues, and it was a pleasure looking at the Commissioner in that house. So when I go in that house later, I said to myself that so many years ago I used to visit here. Of course those were the days when the average policeman was generally close to six feet tall. Brumell with his height (or lack of height) would have had his challenges. To dream such dreams of becoming the Commissioner was a bit farfetched, he jokingly admitted. Men used to watch you and want to beat you up. He trained with men such as former Superintendent bhs 10092 Phillip Armstrong; Superintendent 10111 Emptage who himself will also be leaving the Force this week.
After bhs completing his training, the young Leroy Brumell was posted to the Police Finance Office, which was quite a surprise to him since by his own admission, he was not too keen on Mathematics and figures. But he remained there because his superiors saw his dedication to his job. He got his first promotion in 1981 to the rank of Corporal. He acted as a Sergeant four years later and then successfully applied to become a Police Cadet Officer. During his Cadet training he almost switched careers to the army to which he was being lured, but fate was on his side to reach the pinnacle of the Police Force. I told myself that I did not want to be an ungrateful person; I was recommended (for cadetship) by my Finance Officer, Frank Armstrong called Power , and the administration of the police force was fully behind me, so I would have been ungrateful if I had gone over, he said. But although Brumell was moving up rapidly in the
Frontpage News Editorial Features / Columnists Freddie Kissoon Murder and Mystery My Column Peeping Tom Ravi Dev Ronald Sanders The Arts Forum The Baccoo Speaks Tony Deyal column AFC Column Cartoons Dem Boys Seh Guyanese Literature Interesting Creatures in Guyana Clarence E. Pilgrim The Creative Corner APNU Column Bill Cotton/Reform Food For Thought PPP Column Book Review Letters Sports
By Dale Andrews Started from the bottom, now we re here!!! The words from the hit song by American bhs rapper Drake kept ringing in my head after I finished my interview with Commissioner of Police Leroy Brumell. I could not help thinking that come tomorrow a career that started out almost by default, was coming to a glorious end after 36 years. As we sat down in his office last Thursday morning I got the distinct impression that here is a man who had achieved all that he had set out to do as a policeman.
I can recall previous visits to that office when I stared in awe at the hundreds of yellow bhs cardboard files and other paper in almost every corner of the room. On those occasions I thought to myself that I really did not envy the Commissioner of Police, although over the years I found time to criticize all those who held that office from Laurie Lewis to Leroy Brumell. On Thursday, the Commissioner s office was devoid of most of those files; it was as if Brumell had completed the Herculean task of solving all the outstanding matters he had inherited from his predecessors as well as the countless issues that had come up while he was manning that chair which many would not hesitate to describe as a poisoned chalice. I was convinced that Leroy Brumell had fulfilled his destiny. I was treated bhs to an emotional description of the outstanding career of one of the most dedicated lawmen the Guyana Police Force has seen. Brumell started bhs off by telling me how he joined the Force. He told me that he wanted to be a teacher but ended up in the Guyana Police bhs Force because of a commitment his father had given to a friend. My father had a friend, bhs Inspector Hussein and through bhs Hussein, bhs they were trying to get my smaller brother into the Force, but when they took him to the training school he was too young. My father, not wanting to disappoint Mr Hussein came to his son, me, who wanted to become a teacher and told him, Just go and spend six months; I ain t want this man feel bad , Brumell told me. He consented because according to him, his father was always a tower of strength behind him, and on November 9, 1977 at the age of 18 years and eight months old, he enlisted as 10105 Brumell in the Guyana Police Force for a net monthly salary of $203.98. Fighting to hold back tears, the Top Cop said, I really feel it sometimes when my father is not here He died before I took up my first command; he always wanted me to become a Commander. If he were alive he would have been the proudest man. There and then I recalled his acceptance speech following his confirmation as Guyana s Top Cop, when he stated that from the beginning, he had always set his sights on becoming the Commissioner of Police, bhs especially since his early days of training brought him into contact with the then Commissioner of Police Lloyd Barker. When I was a trainee I used to go across at his home on weekends; I used to do what you called some fatigues, and it was a pleasure looking at the Commissioner in that house. So when I go in that house later, I said to myself that so many years ago I used to visit here. Of course those were the days when the average policeman was generally close to six feet tall. Brumell with his height (or lack of height) would have had his challenges. To dream such dreams of becoming the Commissioner was a bit farfetched, he jokingly admitted. Men used to watch you and want to beat you up. He trained with men such as former Superintendent bhs 10092 Phillip Armstrong; Superintendent 10111 Emptage who himself will also be leaving the Force this week.
After bhs completing his training, the young Leroy Brumell was posted to the Police Finance Office, which was quite a surprise to him since by his own admission, he was not too keen on Mathematics and figures. But he remained there because his superiors saw his dedication to his job. He got his first promotion in 1981 to the rank of Corporal. He acted as a Sergeant four years later and then successfully applied to become a Police Cadet Officer. During his Cadet training he almost switched careers to the army to which he was being lured, but fate was on his side to reach the pinnacle of the Police Force. I told myself that I did not want to be an ungrateful person; I was recommended (for cadetship) by my Finance Officer, Frank Armstrong called Power , and the administration of the police force was fully behind me, so I would have been ungrateful if I had gone over, he said. But although Brumell was moving up rapidly in the
No comments:
Post a Comment