The trauma of truncated police training

The worries
From the above one can see that within the space of barely two years a staggering number of 600 managerial level appointments will have been effected in a sensitive and vital organ of the state like police. Even if one desists from ascribing political motives to such hastily planned unusual appointments as alleged, one cannot but be concerned at such a scenario in view of the time honoured golden principles of establishment pertaining to recruitment of entry level posts in a discipline bound organisation as police Mention has to be made about the less-than-satisfactory experience of similar bulk recruitments in 1973-74, though apparently necessitated by administrative imperatives of a war ravaged independent county and the motivated lateral appointments in 1976 and 1978 by the then military regime.

Although in all such exercises there were some noticeable intake of capable individuals it was more of a chance than the expected planned selection, with the result that these three appointments have been labelled as political with the concomitant unhealthy consequence on enforcement ethos.

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In fact, in independent Bangladesh, regular appointments through nationwide competitive examinations started taking place from 1979, though not on a yearly basis. It must be mentioned that in the recent past during the two party governments there were more than 100 appointments in one go although such intake was not appreciated by the professionals in the department. Sadly, the views of professionals did not receive the desired attention in an atmosphere of emerging political requirements.

The disconcerting part of such politically motivated appointments is that it cripples the training scenario and makes a mess of the career planning. Ad-hoc short-term measures are introduced which in the end produce half-baked and ill-trained officials. It is in this background that the reported bulk recruitments and reduced training schedule has to be viewed.

Our training scenario
Our police training is in a general state of neglect. The training arrangements are unsatisfactory, qualitatively and quantitatively. The strength of the force has increased substantially but the facilities have not kept pace with this increase. The contrast between the Police Academy at Sardah and the training establishments of the Defence Services is so great that one cannot escape the impression that the provision of police training has not received adequate attention from any government. It must, however, be added that the most important reason for the situation of general neglect appears to be the lack of a genuine conviction about the value of training on the part of administration, including the higher ranks of police service.

Even the buildings which house many police training institutions and the state of their maintenance and repair are unworthy of a major organisation of the government entrusted with vital functions. Constable trainees are often accommodated in barracks whose physical conditions are as good as those specified for the inmates of a prison. The budgets of the training schools are meagre and financial powers of institutional heads are extremely limited. These institutions can not find officers who are willing to join the instructional staff and their teaching equipment and other facilities are outmoded.

In recent times, law and order duties have tended to form the major part of police work. In such a scenario the harassed police officials who are hard pressed for time and are perennially short of men, use up their district pools as well as their training reserves and as such are unwilling to spare their men for training except for the shortest of courses. There have been occasions when the trainees were pulled out of training institutions to meet the demands of law and order situations. In such an atmosphere training has become a ritual where new recruits are put through a programme which is often shortened and wherein unwilling and ill-equipped instructors perform the necessary rites of drilling and lecturing.

The training programmes suffer because the posting of officers to training institutions are not a part of any career plan. A stint for two to three years at a training institution is neither an essential nor a desirable qualification for promotion. The special allowances given to instructors are marginal and the officers avoid posting to training establishments because it takes them away from their main line of duty and reduces their visibility in the eyes of senior officers and political masters.

The development of an awareness of the social and political climate in which the policemen has to work does not find much place in the police training programmes and the inculcation of the appropriate attitudes is limited to emphasising the need for discipline, obedience and loyalty. Knowledge and skills relating to human relations, management and higher administration receive scant attention in these programmes.

The duration factor and significance
Time is an important factor governing the effectiveness of any training programme. There is a tendency to cover too much ground in a limited time. Some particular programmes can be handled in a short time but programmes which include attitudinal development need in adult trainees -- an urgent need in our situation -- require comprehensive planning, adequate time and intensive effort both by the instructors and the trainees in order to achieve a positive and lasting effect. It has to be borne in mind that while training does take resources it also reproduces them manifold as it helps to improve human potential and equip the persons trained with necessary skills and attitudes to perform their functions in a more effective manner. Regular training should thus be considered as an investment in human resources.

In Bangladesh context the consideration of the state objectives as enshrined in the constitution impresses the need for training in attitudinal development. Time, therefore, is essential to enable the training process to act as a catalytic agent, the total impact of which, in course of time, will affect the entire organisation. Training efforts need to be sustained to ensure the achievement of desirable objective. In the police, in particular, the over-all efficiency of an individual depends not only on his knowledge and skills but also on his ability to function in a group and to interact effectively with the people. The higher the level of the official, the greater will be the input of managerial and conceptual skills required in training programmes.

The ASPs and training needs
In addition to basic training of one year at the Police Academy, they must undergo the foundational course at PATC, Savar which affords them an opportunity of living and interacting with officers of the other services to help foster a spirit of understanding and cooperation. This training, in order to be effective, should be done during probationary period.

The ASP probationers, who are the potential leaders of the service must be equipped with all such professional knowledge, skills and attitudes that will prepare them for effective performance of their tasks and higher responsibilities. They should be helped to develop a proper sense of values, faith in the rule of law and a spirit of public service. They should have an understanding of the socio-economic changes going on in the country and their thinking should be in tune with the national goals and value systems, urges and aspirations of the people. All these cannot be done in a shortened training course. Premature field exposure to a duty post without proper basic orientation will most likely ruin the career prospects of young officers.

The desired course
The responsibility for fixing the number of actual officers to be required for policing in Bangladesh rests squarely on the shoulder of the government and no body questions the prerogative of the government in this regard. What, however, should concern the taxpaying citizens and an apprehensive audience is the capacity of our training outfits to properly train such officers so that they do not become a problem by themselves and an excruciating burden on the society. Additionally, is there an unhealthy motive in the recruitment of more than usual number of officers in the penultimate year of a political government? Sadly, these questions are bothering the well-wishers of our democratic polity because the integrity of recruitment process of public services in the recent past has not been above board. Without doubt, the accusation of recruitment of partisan law enforcement officers, if true, will dangerously complicate an already fearfully polarised public life.

The Police Academy at Sardah, according to knowledgeable estimation cannot properly train more than 75 ASPs at a given point of time, even after stretching all its resources, physical and instructional. If the need to train larger number of officers is in greater public interest then the appropriate facilities as indicated hereinbefore should be in place before training can commence. If managers do not grow as they are supposed to be, then not only the government but also the entire population stand to suffer.

In the final analysis, the government and the police officials have to understand that any situation of conformation is short-lived, as against the permanent nature of the over-all public good and has to be handled with patience. Such an appreciation can be acquired only if the police are made aware of the essential nature of the ferment in a developing society and can relate it to the fact that the same was recognisable in other societies in a similar state of historical development. Perhaps the one single factor which distinguishes the police services in countries where they are considered as models of popularity is either the fact that the forces were created on the basis of such an understanding of their position or they passed through the phases of turmoil with an intelligent understanding of the basic processes of social development.

Let us, therefore, look beyond our nose and the immediate environment and not engage in unworthy experiments under the cover of so-called public interest. Let us not tinker any further with the basic functions of regulatory framework.

Muhammad Nurul Huda is a former Secretary and IGP