The Guyana Prison Service (GPS) is in dire need of professionals to join its rank and file since more than a dozen officers were fired from the force. This is according to the Director of Prisons, Nicklon Elliot.
Director Elliot, during the Senior Officers Conference today revealed that 17 ranks were last year dismissed from the Guyana Prison Service for various reasons, including broadly, the non-adherence to prison protocols.
But, apart from those who were severed from the prison service, there were also a number of resignations and even a small number of persons who died in the line of duty, according to Elliot.
“There were 17 ranks who were dismissed from the organisation for non-adherence to prison rules, seven retired, 20 resigned for greater employment opportunities while three would have died serving the organisation,” Director Elliot said.
Elliot explained that at the moment, the Prison Service has a total of 601 officers in its employ. He noted too that there are currently 91 professional vacancies in the prison service.
Back in 2018, five prison wardens under surveillance were charged departmentally and their dismissal was recommended following an investigation.
The wardens were reportedly caught smuggling contraband into the prison and their cases were dealt with from December 2016 to January 2017.