What is expected of the new police chief?

Malta’s police force has had six men heading it in the past seven years and many feel the corps is in a sorry state.  What qualities, attributes and priorities do officers and lawyers think the next chief should have? Matthew Xuereb finds out. With just over 2,300 officers, the Malta Police Force is a hard beast to control. The often-cited lack of trust in the top echelons over recent years has dented the morale of several serving police officers. Constables, sergeants and inspectors, who spoke to Times of Malta on condition of anonymity, believe the biggest problem that the next police commissioner has to tackle is this lack of trust, followed by the perceived lack of discipline within the force itself. They insist that a number of incidents in recent years had ruined the credibility of the entire police force, with some officers saying they often found themselves defending the force, explaining to people “that the basket of fruit was not entirely mouldy”. At least eight candidates have applied to become the new police chief though the applicants’ names have not yet been made official. A turbulent recent history After a 12-year stint, John Rizzo was replaced by the Labour...