TIRANA, April 18 /ATA/- “ Fight against organized crime and crime as a whole is a priority for the Ministry of Interior, and as such it requires a police troupe of personal and professional integrity.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fatmir Xhafaj, in his remarks at a Civic Forum on Public Safety in the region of Dibra, held in a format of Police accountability before the citizens, said that policing in community and police vetting will be of tremendous help to the citizens who will have an reliable ally as State Police on their side.
Desire to get rich quick encourages certain people to undertake illegal initiatives whatever the cost. For perpetrators, the consequences of such offences are confinement, for the people it is environmental and health harm, Xhafaj said.
“There are certain individuals who want to stand above the state, others who wish to impose on politics or the state, or want the state to turn the situation to their advantage. To be blunt, I want to deal with such phenomenon without hesitation. To address this, it is needed the engagement of all stakeholders because cooperation with police contributes to crime prevention,” Xhafaj said.
Community policing is about promoting transparency of police work in relation with the citizens as well as accountability. Through this project, any citizen has the opportunity to become a whistle-blower and see first- hand the work of police. The reason behind police vetting is not to purge police force of certain elements and make way for others. All that matters is integrity of police employees. A police of integrity is capable of fight corruption and any other form of crime,” Xhafaj said.
The British ambassador in Tirana Duncan Norman said that the British side is pleased to share their experience in approach to fight against organized crime. Prevention entails working with community in the fight against crime, what the minister proposed, he said.
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