The All Voice Route Taxi Association has condemned the actions of members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, following an incident on South Avenue, St Andrew last Tuesday involving a coaster bus operator.
It says, based on the information available, there is no indication that the operator physically assaulted the officers or resisted arrest that would justify the level of force reportedly used.
Lorraine Finnikin, President for the All Voice Route Taxi Association, says the latest incident has further eroded the significant progress made over the last three years to improve the relationship between PPV operators and the JCF.
“We realized that, since 2025; the latter part of 2025, the confrontation start to seep in little by little.,” he said, adding this “is mostly caused by the young constables that just graduate and come in, start to work out the other road.”
So our concern is these confrontations… they always end up in… three ways; where the operators are being badly beaten, and then they are charged for resisting arrests, assaulting a constable, and then the other charge goes on, where traffic violations are concerned.”
Finnikin told Radio Jamaica News that there have been several incidents of excessive use of force by the police; among them the shooting of a taxi driver in the leg in New Kingston following what was reportedly a no-parking traffic violation, and the beating of an operator in Half-Way Tree:
“The one in St. Thomas, he was shot several times. And walking away from the police, he was shot again from behind! Today, he is wheelchair bound, and the list goes on.”
He said transport operators cannot continue their work “where we will be having these type of physical and verbal confrontation with the police.”
Mr Finnikin said the bus operator involved in an incident on South Avenue in St. Andrew has been accused of reckless, careless and dangerous driving in an attempt to elude the police.
If those allegations are substantiated, the operator should be prosecuted, he said.
He’s calling for the relevant authorities, including the Independent Commission of Investigations and the Police High Command, to conduct a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation into the South Avenue incident.
He also want these entities to investigate other allegations of excessive use of force by the police, “and not only to investigate it but let the findings be known to the public, because we have always been told when we ask about particular incidents that it has been dealt with internally. We don’t know what has been the outcome of those incident.”