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President Mugabe

President Mugabe, who is Head of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, was yesterday the guest of honour at the graduation ceremony of 593 police recruits at Morris Depot, in Harare. Below is his full speech…

The Commissioner-General of Police, Comrade Augustine Chihuri; Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Ignatius Chombo; other Ministers here present, Commander Zimbabwe Defence Forces, General Constantine Chiwenga; Commissioner Zimbabwe Prison Service, Retired Major-General Paradzai Zimondi; Deputy Commissioners-General, Commandant Depot, Senior Assistant Commissioner Munyori Tayedzerwa, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Senior Government Officials, Senior Police Officers here present, graduands, ladies and gentlemen, comrades and friends.

I am most delighted to be with you here at this year’s police graduation parade. It is an occasion I look forward to every year, especially the immaculate displays and fascinating demonstrations which have become a permanent feature of police graduation parades. Today we proudly send off a strong contingent of 593 young men and women who join the Zimbabwe Republic Police.

I believe this large contingent comprising 340 men and 253 women police recruits is an indication of our resolve to combat the increasingly alarming incidence of crime in our country. With time we would ultimately like to attain a comfortable and manageable police-population ratio, where one police officer is to serve a certain number of people.

But our war against crime cannot be solely premised on the mass production of police officers. It is absolutely necessary to improve the quality of our police training. Such training should be thorough as to prevail over the not only sophisticated but versatile modern-day criminal. Police training seeks to develop a curriculum that prepares the police officers to face challenges in the course of duty.

Today’s graduands received training that was significantly different from previous intakes. They followed a one-year training duration, which was a change from the traditional one which lasted only six months. The new training paradigm also involved on-the-job training, which required students to be attached to various police stations countrywide, before they returned to the Depot for further refinement integration of skills.

The theoretical content of training provided a rich and firm background, comprising courses aimed at producing an all-round police education. The core course included, among others;

• Political History of Zimbabwe
• The Constitution of Zimbabwe
• Police Duties and Investigations
• Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, Chapter 9:23
• Domestic Violence Act, Chapter 5:16
• Basic Accounting
• Community Policing
• Traffic Enforcement and Local Languages, as well as Sign Language.

Noteworthy is the introduction of the teaching of local and sign languages, a fundamental aspect of this new curriculum, which ensures that all officially recognised languages are treated equitably. Certainly, this constitutional requirement is not only cardinal for the creation of an inclusive society, but emboldens police effectiveness, through the creation of strong community relations. A versatile police officer should also find it fairly easy to work with and within the local environment.

Ladies and gentlemen,

At this point allow me to turn my attention to today’s graduating police recruits.

Your life in the police force starts today. What happened in the last 12 months belongs to training, a preparation for what happens from today onwards. You have thus been equipped with skills and knowledge, which you should find ready for application in your day-to-day life as a police officer.

You are expected to be humble enough to accept that what you have acquired in training does not necessarily surpass the world of experience that those in the police force before you possess. It is not yours to look down upon them; remember that nothing can replace the experience they have. That is precisely why they are already commissioners, superintendents or inspectors. You would be extraordinary if you shot to those ranks, immediately on joining the police force!

Having said that, I also ask you to take note and be wary of old stock who are too ready to lead you astray. You should be prepared to meet those of them who are always complaining of this or that, as they often choose to speak of the worst side of the police force, or their superiors in general.

Ask yourself as to why, if the police work is so bad, as they say, they still continue to be in the police force? Sift and sieve what you see and hear.

I believe your training has prepared you to work in the community, among and with the people. Your clients are by nature varied, be they rural, urban, living on mines, or farms. The more varied they are, the more different they are in their expectations, perceptions, needs, even prejudices and understanding of the police.

There are those among them who look at you with admiration, and some with hate or even indifference. The society you work in is complex, certainly not an easy one. But if you are fair and firm you will go a long way in your career which has just started today.

I am told, while performing your duty, lots of temptation will visit you, especially police officers manning roadblocks. Such temptation, I am reliably informed, is blind to gender or age, and is not regional or tribalistic. Be warned!

Improve yourself in the police organisation through study and research. Aim high so as not to be one of those who are heard boasting, “. . . I have 20 years as a constable.” Uphold Zimbabwe’s reputation of being the most literate country in Africa.

I urge you to value loyalty and commitment as clear fundamental virtues of your policing career. As police officers, you have a duty to maintain, indeed contribute, to the excellent brand the ZRP has made over the years. In addition, it is incumbent upon you to broaden the scope of law and order in the country. You also should regard yourselves as beacons and embodiments of high morality.

As we prepare for the 2018 harmonised elections, I urge all Zimbabweans to remain united in upholding peace. We should not present our detractors with an opportunity to discredit our own internal democratic processes. I am confident that police will be up to the task as they help to maintain peace and order.

In conclusion, I take this opportunity to thank you all, the instructors, spouses, relatives and friends for all you did to support the graduating students and for gracing this occasion. To the best recruits, and all the graduands in general, I thank you for your swift drill movements and impressive turnout. I say;

Congratulations!

Makorokoto!

Amhlope!

I thank you.