By- Aruna Rashed Toma Bngura

The Head of Community Relations Department of the Sierra Leone Police, Chief Superintendent of Police, Edna Silver has received showers of praises from the public and colleagues for her outstanding performance in proactively engaging in robust community sensitizations on crime prevention and safety that led to drastic crime rate in 2022.

According to the 2022 annual statistics report, the community relations department played an active role in crime reduction by 11%.

Speaking to this medium via interview, CSP Edna Silver said the community relations department of the police has been playing their active role in community engagement, involvement and partnership with community people which she said are key aspect of community policing. She said their responsibility is taking policing to the doorsteps of the people, building trust and confidence with active community engagement and sensitization.

The Chief Superintendent of Police continued that one of their focal activities is community engagement and sensitization which she maintained that they do not do alone but with members of the Local Policing Partnership Board (LPPBs), adding that they have 35 LPPBs in 36 divisions working directly with the police. “Our responsibility is to see that the community and people have cordial relationship,” she said. She added that they are taking non-violence messages to the communities and people to respect the laws of the nation as no one is above the law and should therefore work within the confines of the law.

CSP Edna Silver carried on that the community relations department team engages the people in different communities about indiscipline, drug abuse, violence, misinformation, disinformation, sexual penetration, sexual and gender base violence and others that will cause chaos and anarchy, adding that in every community they go, there are good and bad people. She said their messages to the community people are segmented because there are certain crimes prevalent in certain communities.

She admonished the public to be law abiding as the police is looking forward to see the cooperation, collaboration and coordination and helping the police with relevant information on crime and crime related activities.