BUJUMBURA June 12th (ABP) – The Cabinet met on Wednesday, June 9, 2021, in Gitega under the chairmanship of the Head of State, Mr. Evariste Ndayishimiye, with 9 items on the agenda including the bill relating to the bylaws of officers, brigadiers and agents of police, according to the press release from the General Secretariat of the State.
The three bills were presented by the Minister of the Interior, Community Development and Public Security, Mr. Gervais Ndirakobuca.
According to the press release, the national police of Burundi is governed by the organic law of February 20, 2017 on the missions, organization and functioning of the national police of Burundi.
That law provides for a number of implementing texts, in particular the bylaws of the personnel of the national police, and it is within this framework that those draft laws were drawn up.
The press release said that currently the officers, brigadiers and agents of the national police of Burundi are governed by bylaws put in place in December 2010.
Those bills are largely inspired by those bylaws of December 2010 while adapting to the organic law of 2017, by bringing certain innovations that could allow the officer, the brigadier and the agent of police to work in a socio-economic, security and political environment of the moment.
Among the innovations are the conditions of recruitment where the notion of celibacy is more explicit.
In terms of rights, duties and incompatibilities, innovations are also made with regard to the advantages linked to working conditions, seniority, support for the family of the active police officer who dies as well as support for a worthy reintegration into civilian life for retirees.
For grades, nomenclature innovations are being made in particular to remove some confusion, facilitate communication and identification by the people and to carry grades similar to those worn in other countries.
New developments have also been made with regard to bonuses, allowances and other social benefits as encouragement and compensation for the constraints and risks of the police profession.
Innovations can also be observed in career management as well as in the disciplinary system.
It is worth noting that those bills were analyzed and passed by the Cabinet in December 2019 with the establishment of a commission responsible for finalizing them.
But, according to the press release, given the sufficiently long time elapsed, it was necessary for the government to take cognizance of the content of those bills and also to check whether the recommendations issued have been incorporated.
After analysis of those bills finalized by the commission which was set up for that purpose, the Cabinet passed them with the recommendation to the Minister in charge of National Defense to approve the draft bylaws of the officers, non-commissioned officers and troops of the National Defense Force so that the bylaws of the two bodies are analyzed in parallel at the level of the Parliament. Regarding ranks, the Cabinet recommended ensuring that they are aligned with those worn in the East African Community.
Regarding the period of advancement in rank, the Cabinet recommended that it be harmonized at the level of the National Police and the National Defense Force.
With regard to the granting of the last grade, it was recommended that the advancement take into account the retirement age of the person concerned.
In addition, it would be necessary to check whether the name of “Brigadier” does not create confusion between the function and the rank and to find an adequate term.