Peter Paul Zammit, a legal procurator who had formerly served in the Police Force for 25 years, has taken over as Police Commissioner from John Rizzo, who will continue to serve as head of the Civil Protection Department.
Mr Rizzo can look back on his eventful 12 years as Commissioner of Police with a measure of satisfaction, where he served loyally after taking over in unhappy circumstances following his predecessor’s resignation.
He has shown a steady hand on the tiller through a busy period with several general elections, the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, a steep increase in illegal immigration and a number of high profile criminal cases, all of which inevitably placed considerable pressure on the Police Force.
However, while he was in charge, police relations with the media were close to non-existent, to the detriment of both the police and the public.
The new Police Commissioner has an opportunity to make his mark at a psychologically important time.
Mr Zammit is fortunate in taking over a force that operates in a country which is peacable and safe and relatively low on crime. However, it is a force which, of all the Maltese public institutions to be rebuilt since 1987, has probably made the least progress.
Mr Zammit will want to set a new agenda for change – not least in his relations with the media. The importance of seeking an improvement on this front should come high on the new Commissioner’s to-do list with a more open and modern approach being adopted to ensure that the media are on his side and, through it, the public.
He will have even deeper reasons for instituting change. The operational effectiveness of the Police Force is derived from a combination of factors. These include professional competence, good organisation, acute operational intelligence, especially in the war on drugs and the battle with corruption, adequate manpower resources, up-to-date equipment and effective leadership. In all these areas there is a sense that the Police Force still has some way to go.
Mr Zammit will need to find ways of improving efficiency and effectiveness. Although it would be encouraging to think that he might be given additional resources to make the necessary improvements, the reality is that money will continue to be tight.
He must therefore plan on making the necessary improvements to modernise the force without expecting much additional finance to do it. The challenge will be whether he can achieve increased efficiency with the same resources.
He will wish to examine how he can improve the utilisation of existing manpower. The deployment of officers in districts around the island may need re-examining to ensure resources are placed where they are most effective, not simply where they have always been before.
The organisation and command and control of the force needs reconsideration so that there is a greater presence where it is most needed, for example in Paceville that tends to be a hotbed of drink and drugs-related crime, and other areas which are crime hotspots for burglary.
Continuation training development should be considerably stepped up to ensure that the professional competence of policemen is improved. The attachment of selected officers to foreign forces should be introduced as happens with the Armed Forces of Malta.
Similarly, senior officers should be sent on courses to foreign staff colleges to broaden their experience, learn the latest policing methods and prepare them for future leadership roles.
Mr Zammit needs to have a new agenda for change.