The Bahamas Department of Corrections is  at a point of transformation, according to National Security Minister Marvin Dames.

 Yesterday while addressing senior management in the first of a series of similar exercises,  the minister said for far too long prison officers have been known as the “stepchildren of law enforcement,” vowing that the department’s concerns have  not gone unnoticed. 

He said, “like the police force that  has its own commission which allows for promotions to be dealt with in an expeditious way, we are moving as a government to ensure that the Bahamas Department of Corrections has its own commission.”

He added, “we want to take you out of the public service circle,  because I believe this is part of the reason why any time you have promotions or recommendations for promotions, they  span longer than they are supposed to.”

The Minister reiterated the need to transform the BDC from that of a penal to a corrections institution. 

He added that the country is lagging behind many developed countries in this regard. 

He said, “this means that we take you, we lock you up, we leave you there, you serve your time, we punish you more and more, and then you go back into society not being rehabilitated. 

“So, you get caught up in this vortex of recidivism, and within a few days or weeks you’re back into the institution,” he added.

Mr. Dames also mentions a study conducted by the ministry which is set to give clear demarcation to each rank within the institution and outline each individual’s expected duties.

The results of this report, he said, is set to be released shortly. 

Minister Dames was the keynote speaker in the first of a series of management exercises under the theme “Restoring the Breach, Moving Forward.”