Men in khaki uniform must use humour

The Police wants to minimise vehicle accidents. But there is another aspect that the police must focus on; incorporating humour into their day-to-day activities

The Sri Lanka Police are so close to the public in terms of dispensing their duties. For some unexplainable reason, people fear the men in khaki. This could be one reason why the Sri Lanka Police have decided to use some humour in sending a message to errant drivers. The police website has a recent post to attract the attention of drivers who wouldn’t care much about being obedient drivers. 

The post shows the drawing of a horse. The first half of the animal from the tail to the body is drawn to precision. But the other half, which contains the head area of the animal, is depicted as the shoddy work of a child artist. The latter half of the drawing (which is shoddy) underscores the fact that brilliant cars can be driven by mediocre drivers.

The Police want to minimise vehicle accidents. But there is another aspect that the police must focus on; incorporating humour into their day-to-day activities. 

The khaki uniform is so intimidating. This could be one reason why former DIG Pujith Jayasundara was seriously considering changing the colour of the police attire to dark blue. 

The police have to be tough. But they can certainly use proven methods to ease the pressure of motorists. In Thailand, dancing cops became a hit with  motorists at one time. Most cops (law enforcement officers) have unfriendly faces. You cannot demand entertainment from them. But there are the exceptions. This writer still remembers the advertisement made in India for the Kit Kat chocolate wafer. The drop-dead gorgeous women, a traffic congestion stress in India and a highly excited cop were the ingredients for a memorable advertisement which was made in the 1970s. The smiling cop (in the advertisement) didn’t allow the charming women to steal the show!

Going back to the schooldays of this writer, he can remember how the school he attended organised live shows with cops and moving vehicles to show us how to be law-abiding citizens. And the underlying theme for all these acts in schools by the police officers was ‘humour’. There have been occasions in  history where cops and humour surprisingly go together. 

After leaving school, this writer developed the habit of witnessing club rugby matches. The Police Sports Club had a very competitive side in the league tournament. There was once a newspaper article about the Police team of 1985. The Police captain was quoted saying “we’re the police so most hate us”. Those words were reproduced in a banner headline in that newspaper article. That was the dark side of the police, but anyone instilling discipline in a society cannot expect to be a popular person in a society. 

But there are ways to close the gap between law enforcement officers and the public. The police can help in this endeavour by engaging in other activities outside official duty. We remember personalities like singer Anura Senanayake, who held the post of Senior DIG. His songs like Mage kirilli, Sudurella and Payaennasande pulled at the heartstrings of the people. Then we had Senior DIG (retired) Nimal Lewke who invested much time on rugby coaching, eventually rising to the post of Sri Lanka coach. Once when asked why he was investing time on rugby, his answer was: “Unless you do something gainful outside your duty hours you’ll be lost in a khaki jungle”. The former national boxer and STF Commandant Lewke is a warmhearted person, but that aspect of his personality could be seen by the public because rugby afforded him an opportunity to mingle with the public. 

The Sri Lanka Police must interact more with the public. We only get to interact with the men in khaki when they step into our villages following a tip off or a complaint.  On most occasions, these men in uniform are like men possessed. The Police can showcase the soft side in them. They can take a cue from the British Police. Ask a British policeman on the road for directions and you’re sure he’ll follow you in case you take a wrong turn. Empathy and humour are tools which the police can work with to be efficient and drive in messages.