I have met many good policemen — it’s hard to believe that their situation is nowhere near that of living a clean life as a normal human being
There’s this policeman in our area who is kind of a hero to me. He’s not really a big shot kind of a guy, just the regular uncle-type, with hair and beard like the Irish (henna, of course), well-built, and righteous from head to toe. Every day I see him while going to work, relentlessly pacing up and down the road, making sure the vehicles keep moving.
Sometimes, the black sheep of drivers, you know, the one who thinks his uncle made the road exclusively for him to practice his freewill upon, gets caught by this uncle cop, and the scene that follows is what I enjoy the most (I’m giggling already): It’s like watching Adam West’s Batman beating villains up with those special visual sound effects (like thud, thwack, poof and kaboom). And while uncle cop’s at it he tells the driver how he was asked to remain on track and not pick up passengers from the middle of the road. Sometimes he also explains the situation to pedestrians so that they don’t get him wrong.
What amazes me is that these cops and traffic policemen are on duty for over 12 hours a day, and then what amazes me further is that most of them get to go back to their home in places like Rajarbagh Police Lines, where there is everything but a decent home for them to relax in after being roasted alive the whole day, with extra icing from flyover dust et al. Recently, I heard from a friend, who has a friend who lives in one of those police quarters, that their toilets are swarming with cockroaches and centipedes 24/7 and their bedrooms have rods peeking out of the layers of brick and cement, covered with old clothes to prevent dust from entering their eyes when they are trying to get some sleep.
No wonder cops are so pissed all the time; they might seem calm, but that’s just the good training showing up. If I was forced to live in such conditions I would have been pissed too. People who are guarding the nation are getting the worst of all treatments when they deserve the best, while those whom we don’t really need every day not only get to put all of their monthly salaries into their bank accounts, but also get treated like kings, are sent to foreign lands for more training that they’ll never use and a guarantee that at the end of the day they’ll also have their own businesses!
Don’t get me wrong — I know that there are many rotten apples in the barrel who exploit simpletons and become landlords by the time they retire, but is this the way that they really want to do all of this? Or is the situation in need of proper attention, in need of nurturing the good ones as well? I have come to know very recently about how recruitment and transfer to Dhaka works for cops, and I was devastated to learn of the situation as it is.
I mean, I have met so many good policemen in my life till now that it’s hard to believe that their situation is nowhere near that of living a clean life as a normal human being. There is the thought of starting a family, having kids, sending them to a good school, raising them well and on top of that, sacrificing their personal life to save that of others, and while doing that, if any body is subjected to live in the worst conditions imaginable, then it is inevitable for them to lose some of their sanity.
I’ve watched a lot of movies from different countries around the world and those related to policemen, keep showing how they mostly have a proper home to live in and raise their children. But hey, that’s all in film. In real life, according to laws in many countries, the police force is allowed to do anything and everything to stop crime from entering the common man’s doorstep. And it’s not that they don’t benefit from that.
Not going into details, but there are some places in the world that allow cops to track criminals who have a lot of black money and stolen goods that no one is left to claim, and once they catch the bad guys the whole finding is first divided into two parts — the smaller portion goes to the treasury of the government, and the rest is equally shared among the heroes who smoked the criminals out of their holes. Tell me now, is that not a great idea? If we could introduce something like that in this country, I think we would become a land of saints in no time! Of course then there would be no work for the cops to do, but that’s not right is it? Maybe I’m just giving into too much fantasy, aren’t I?
The police force of any country is supposed to be one of the most sacred institutions in that country, dedicated to guard and serve the nation and its people, and provide protection and justice as and when needed without one bit of hesitation.
To achieve this ideal situation, a lot of aspects have to be thought of and foolproof human resource management is needed so that policemen, after joining the force and completing their probationary period, do not have to be worried at all about their career or future or finances. Apart from the twisted way that I have mentioned above (which would still be a great practice), there are several ways in which policemen can be given a wonderful life, and at the least be provided with a good place to live so that they have a decent home to come back to after a hard day’s work.
Our neighbours have laws and systems that protect and provide the best possible lives for their guardians. But we are still unable to give them the basics. This needs to change at the earliest because if we are not going to guard the lives of our guardians, then who else will?
Source: Dhaka Tribune
