The Editor, Sir:

Francine Richards, in a letter published May 18, took issue with Minister of National Security Dwight Nelson's comments on the state of the barracks at Up Park Camp as she objects to "our hard-earned dollars" being spent on repairing the facilities there. She stated that "soldiers are not expected to do day-to-day police/security work". This lady certainly has some strong opinions about a subject of which she apparently has little or no information. Let me try to help her and any other equally uninformed persons:

The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), both regular and reserves, do assist the police on a regular basis. They are usually the majority of the patrols which sometimes have only one policeman. How do they manage to do this? It is simple: the policeman usually works only eight hours per day while JDF personnel very often 'go around the clock' because they operate under an entirely different law. It is common for a JDF patrol to drop off and pick up police two and sometimes three times in a single day as they continue their patrols with little or no rest.

JDF personnel can't just go to any doctor and pick up a sick certificate. They have to be found to be 'unwell' by a JDF medical officer who won't allow any slacking off. As a result, soldiers can't do things like going on 'sick-outs' for more pay or better working conditions as can other publicly employed personnel. By law, they cannot go on strike. Those are some of the main reasons why the JDF must never be merged with any other force in Jamaica.

As a result, the JDF very often has had to fill in for 'sick' police (almost the entire force), striking prison warders, striking hospital warders, nurses, firemen, longshoremen and I don't know how many others.

The JDF has always been the first to respond in times of natural disasters. Ask the people of New Market how they would have managed to get along for almost a year during the flood a few years ago, if not for the JDF Coast Guard.

The JDF has been employed for many years now searching for and destroying marijuana crops across the length and breadth of Jamaica and with much success.

The JDF has to maintain a large number of personnel on standby 365 days per year who are ready to respond instantly to any internal security matters that may arise from day to day. Some of those were very busy at the Montego Bay Airport recently.

Many fishermen and pleasure boaters are alive and well today because the Coast Guard and Air Wing are always available to search for and rescue people in trouble on the high seas.

Because you can't take a civilian, put him or her into uniform and call that person a 'soldier', the JDF constantly conducts training, at all levels, in order to ensure that our little army/coast guard/air wing acquire and maintain the skills necessary to keep us safe and, so far, they have done a very creditable job.

The Government cannot wait until the need arises for soldiers to recruit and train people. That would be too late. They have to be trained, ready and on stand-by to respond to any emergency.

The JDF helps other Caribbean countries during times of natural disasters as are we also helped by others.

After the Grenada invasion, the JDF spent a rather long stretch of duty there helping to run the prison system and maintain order, etc.

The Gleaner headline of Saturday, 23 May 2009, read '10 lives saved ... JDF Air Wing comes to the defence of Jamaicans again'. I wonder if any of those 10 were friends, relatives or co-workers of Ms Richards? That doesn't matter, really, as they were fellow humans beings.

I am, etc.,

DERRYCK PENSO

pensoreal@yahoo.com