President Danny Faure visited the police headquarters and the fire and rescue services station on Mahe and Praslin, and police stations on Praslin, as part of his weekly visits to workplaces and institutions.
At the police headquarters, he was welcomed by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Kishnan Labonté. The Commissioner of Police gave a tour of the headquarters which includes the Central Police Station, traffic section, police mess, command centre, human resource room, and archive and registry room.
President Faure and his delegation then had a meeting with the Commissioner of Police, the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Romano Songore, the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Ted Barbe, Director General for Human Resources and Budget Management, Mrs Angel Lebon, Officer in Charge of regions and regional commanders, Chief Superintendent Philip Cecile, and Public Relations and Corporate Image Manager, Mr Jean Toussaint.
During the meeting, the President highlighted that he is satisfied with the good working relationship between the Commissioner of Police and the Office of the Attorney General. He noted that he has formally received a plan with priorities from the Commissioner of Police. In partnership with the Ministry of Finance, the President said that the Commissioner of Police will need to re-organise distribution of the budget for the police force.
The Commissioner of Police also briefed the President on his plan to have better functioning police stations, and the need for more staff. Consequently, he discussed at length the re-organisation of the police force.
The President then proceeded to the fire and rescue services stations in Victoria. He was greeted by the Chief Fire Officer, Mr André Morel, and senior officers. Altogether, fire and rescue services have 167 staff: 152 men, 15 women and 3 ordinary officers.
He visited various units including the prevention unit, planning office, training unit, recreational area, workshop unit, command centre, disaster management room, store, and other facilities. Mr Morel and other officers took the opportunity to share their constraints and challenges, such as proper place for them to conduct trainings, with President Faure.
In the afternoon, President Faure visited the Grand Anse and Baie St Anne police stations on Praslin, as well as the fire and rescue services facility on Ile Eve.
His visit on Praslin began at the newly built police station at Grand Anse where he was welcomed by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Kishnan Labonte, and Praslin Stations Superintendent Mr James Matombe. He received a guided tour of the new facilities which are up and running, but require minor infrastructural adjustments to ensure the facility meets the needs of the station.
The delegation then proceeded to the Baie St Anne reporting station, one of the oldest police stations still operational in Seychelles where the President had the opportunity to view the current station facilities and interact with officers on duty.
At the fire and rescue services facility at Baie St Anne, guided by Station Officer Mr Joachim Marie, the President viewed the station's administrative block with offices, fire and rescue equipment, as well as the dormitories and staff quarters.
The tour on Praslin ended with a meeting at the Grand Anse Police Station where officials had the opportunity to discuss their concerns on daily operations, legal issues, recruitment, and human resource deployment. The team also briefed the President on the adoption of a more proactive work approach in relation to education and raising awareness, crime prevention, and strategies to reinforce surveillance.
The President was accompanied on the visits by the Designated Minister, Mrs Macsuzy Mondon, the Attorney General, Mr Frank Ally, and Special Advisor to police, Ms Sheryl Vangadasamy.
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