By Ralph SeeramThe minibus was supposed to pick me up at 2pm; it was now 3pm and the bus was late to pick me up. It was a special hire, I was paying for a round trip so there was no need for them to pick up passengers. When I got the driver on the phone he said that they will be arriving soon; that they had a problem on the way.I retorted that I hoped the problem was not that they stopped to have “a drink”. If that was the case they can turn right back. I even went further to tell them (the driver and two cousins) that I am going to smell their breath for liquor.I do not travel by public minibus in Guyana. When I visit Guyana I would like to return to Florida “in one piece”. Travelling by public minibuses reduces that possibility. I always hire a taxi or in this case a minibus, and I would advise anyone in the Diaspora visiting Guyana to do the same.Anyway there is another dangerous hazard on the roads in Guyana; they are the nightmare for drivers on the roads in Guyana. Drivers fear them more than the dangerous traffic hazards they face daily. The source of fear is the police in uniform, and they are not limited to traffic ranks on the road. It seems that any police can go stopping vehicles without cause, to “shake down drivers”.I want to make it clear that not all policemen are corrupt; some of them put their lives on the line,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, and some lost their lives in the line of duty.When my driver arrived, they explained that they were stopped by a policeman, who after finding all their required documents were in order, held on the driver’ license for no reason telling them he will “take dem down” obviously meaning to the station. He then started to negotiate a “small piece” for the return for the licence.The problem was that none of them had much cash on them; they had bought enough gas to reach Georgetown from Berbice, and had little cash left. Anyway to “make a long story short” they gave him G$1000 for the return of the licence.Policemen extorting money from drivers is nothing new. I can remember way back in the 80’s it was the same old story. A policeman was demanding a bribe in front of the Weldaad Police Station. I came out and confronted him telling him that I will go into the station and call the Berbice police head (whom I knew then). He quickly let us go on our way.I get the impression that drivers in Guyana are resigned to the fact that paying extortion to policemen is a way of life if they are to survive. The standard fee seems to be G$3000. The threat is always,Jerseys Cheap NFL, “I will carry you down”. Not wanting to waste time and lose a day’s work,NFL Jerseys Supply, a driver is forced to pay these highway robbers in uniform.The problem is those in charge of the Guyana Police Force know this racket is an ongoing exercise, but do nothing seriously to eradicate it. If you do nothing tangible to rid the problem then my view is those in higher authority in the police force actually encourage it. At this point in time it seems engrained.The Commissioner of Police cannot say he is unaware of this problem, but what the Commissioner of Police needs to do is make strong efforts to eradicate this practice. Please don’t hide behind the excuse of “call and report it”. The process has to start internally,NFL Jerseys Outlet, within the force. I can’t remember reading of policemen being dismissed from the force for taking bribes.While I was in Guyana I observed a notice in the Guyana Chronicle dated August 18 from the Ministry of Home Affairs advising drivers of offences for which a traffic ticket could be issued, offences for which the drivers need not go to the station. In other words the policeman cannot take you to the station for those offences.It covers some of the most common offences for which the police attempt to threaten drivers to take them to the station.The notice went on to list phone numbers and emails where drivers can report policemen who threaten or take them to the police station. I asked a journalist friend of mine, whether drivers call the numbers; his answer, “why call nobody answers or responds”. Herein lies the problem,Cheap Jerseys Store, Guyana has laws on the books, but enforcement is the problem. If a policeman takes a driver and his vehicle to the station for an offence that should be ticketed, would that police be penalized, I doubt it very much.To me what is needed is a proactive approach by the Ministry Of Home Affairs, the Guyana Police Force and the various taxis and minibus associations to distribute flyers and also educate drivers by way of media etc. of their rights, as well as punishing offending officers.Readers will notice I did not touch on those guilty of the offences an