The president of the police union (SPA), Lito Lacle, strongly voiced the concerns living within the police force. He raised the alarm over the lack of attention regarding personnel shortages and demanded structural clarity from the Police Force (KPA).
Alarm Over Personnel Shortage
According to Lacle, the staffing situation within the force is a serious issue where the rights of the workers must be pursued, especially in a context involving personnel cuts. “We have raised the alarm everywhere,” Lacle explained, regretting that up until now they have not received the necessary attention.
However, following a recent meeting between the Police Force and the SPA, some clarity was brought to the table. The Beach Police (Detectives) are at DAR 2, and a person was found to join the team in the Noord district, as well as the Santa Cruz district. “As we speak,” vacancies are open so that more people can apply for the Detective department, with the goal of filling the positions that are currently vacant.
The union leader emphasized that what SPA is looking for from the Police Force is clarity (duidelijkheid) and total transparency in order to get an update on what is truly happening. Lacle pointed out that letters were sent and replies were received, including a collaboration protocol (samwerkingsprotocol) just one day after the meeting. This document was handed over to the Chief of Staff so it can be properly read and evaluated.
Lacle stressed that the union does not believe in words alone, and that there must be a clear strategy to handle these letters to know exactly what is going on. SPA was unaware of this collaboration protocol and questioned why, if the director of Respaldo had not called or invited them to a meeting before June 1st, the situation could not have been properly clarified.
Awaiting Meetings and Judicial Restructuring
There are currently two very clear topics on the table: the response from February 9th and the meeting of June 17th, where the collaboration protocol was supposed to be discussed alongside two members or representatives of SPA sitting at the table.
Regarding the restructuring of the Police Force, Lacle indicated that this is in its final phase (afrundingsfase) at the Human Resources Department (DRH). However, for the legal part, the Department of Legislation and Legal Affairs (DWZ) must ensure the formulation of a national decree (landsbesluit). The current national decree, which concerns the legal status of police officers from the year 2011, is still being applied everywhere, and all promotions (bevorderings) must comply with this decree. Even so, some processes have not followed the current decree, leading certain colleagues and members within KPA to seek their legal rights.
Finally, Lacle explained that this legal component is still missing, and the process could be lengthy. Colleagues at DWZ are trying to draft a national decree within at least a year, provided that this is set as a priority—especially since personnel cuts also play a role in this delay.