Former Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves has strongly condemned recent top-level promotions within the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, declaring that the organization has become “entirely politicized” under the current administration.
Speaking on a recent broadcast, Gonsalves took specific aim at the reported promotion of Inspector Brenton Smith to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police. According to Gonsalves, Smith previously left the police force at the rank of Station Sergeant after refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, subsequently entering politics and serving as the General Secretary of the New Democratic Party (NDP).
Gonsalves criticized the decision to allow a returning political official to bypass multiple intermediate ranks—such as Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent—to secure a top leadership role. He called the rapid elevation of a former politician “plain wrong” and argued that it is wholly unfair to long-serving professionals who remained in the force and worked their way through the ranks.
The Opposition leader expressed grave disappointment in the Police Service Commission, stating he could not believe they were properly advised to approve such a rank-skipping promotion. Furthermore, he criticized the Minister of National Security for publicly announcing the promotion and detailing Smith’s new duties.
Gonsalves argued that assigning an Assistant Commissioner to oversee human resources is strictly an internal management issue for the Commissioner of Police, not a political matter for a government minister to dictate. According to Gonsalves, these public directives demonstrate that “boundaries have been crossed by politicians”.
While fiercely opposing Smith’s promotion, Gonsalves drew a clear distinction between that case and the expected elevations of Superintendent Dwayne Bailey and Senior Officer Trevor “Buju” Bailey to Deputy Commissioner roles. He noted that both men are excellent, professional police officers.
He also emphasized that the nation’s constitution explicitly grants the Prime Minister a role in the appointment of the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioners, meaning those specific roles naturally fall under civilian direction. Because those appointments followed constitutional boundaries, Gonsalves stated he had no quarrel with them and considered them to be within the bounds of reasonableness.
However, Gonsalves warned that the unprecedented promotion of a known political figure to Assistant Commissioner will have “a lot of repercussions”. He cautioned that Vincentians inherently believe in fairness, and both the rank-and-file police officers and the general public will view this move as a blatant display of political favoritism that undermines the integrity of the force.