Message from Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police
On this 50th golden anniversary of Dubai Police, it gives me great pleasure and honour to congratulate, on behalf of all Dubai Police officers and policemen, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Lt. General Shaikh Ahmad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Head of Dubai Police, and Lt. General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Interior.
We have proved our ability to implement the principles, values and strategies adopted by the late Shaikh Zayed, Shaikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum and Shaikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum who founded our country on the basis of justice, fairness, tolerance, helping the needy people and treating them equally, regardless of their religion, colour, race or nationality.
"Dubai Police has been and will continue to be the force that safeguards those noble principles and values that are essential, as we firmly believe in maintaining and enhancing security and stability in our homeland.
"Fifty years of experience means to us a great professional, scientific and human outcome. Fifty years of hard work as well as unique experiences make Dubai Police rich in knowledge and information, which enable us to carry out our duties successfully. Fifty years of distinction and modernity enable Dubai Police to establish firm, strong and streamlined relationships that have turned into bridges of confidence with the people.
"We have also learnt from our mistakes, although we have very few in our records. We learn from the mistakes of others, too, and this allows us to overcome whatever might harm our relation with the people.
"The past 50 years comprise five stages. The first witnessed the establishment of Dubai Police, and extended 10 years between 1956 and 1966. The second stage also lasted 10 years, from 1966 to 1976, where we worked hard and very fast and caught up with the security forces in the Arab homeland and the world. The third stage between 1976 and 1986 was a period where we managed to overtake others in many areas. Then came the quality period between 1986 and 1996. Finally between 1996 and 2006 came the stage of excellence and internationality.
"During its march, Dubai Police achievements came under the wise leadership of Shaikh Mohammad who became head of the force in 1968. He has been a distinguished and patient leader who keeps his presence of mind when others lose their composure when facing critical issues. He never confuses those working around him, and has the capability to facilitate things to reach ideal solutions.
"I had the honour of working under Shaikh Mohammad. I honestly say that the things we achieved as leaders, the things that we are proud of in our service records, were not possible if we were working under anyone else. We are important as members of the team, but the most important is who heads that team. One month back I heard him praise a team without mentioning names, saying that this team was able and produces good work. This would not have been possible had they been working under anyone else.
"When talking about the achievements of Dubai Police, or of the emirate of Dubai, one has to be honest and attribute those achievements to Shaikh Mohammad.
"Thirty-eight years of direct contact with the people, living and solving their problems, was instrumental in providing Shaikh Mohammad with profound knowledge of the concerns and worries of the people of his country and the right way to find the solutions.
"Today, as we celebrate the golden anniversary of Dubai Police, we decide to extend our celebrations over 50 days - one day for every year. There will be music bands playing lovely tunes in the shopping malls, police cars roaming the streets, painted golden to highlight the banner '50 years of excellence and sacrifice.' There will be visits to hospitals, accompanied by radio and TV teams, to those who were traffic casualties to wish them well. By this we want to show the true and human face of Dubai Police and how it behaves towards people with special needs.
The celebration will also include decorating police stations and hanging long sheets of golden cloth with the banner '50 years of excellence and sacrifice.' There will be celebrations to honour distinguished people, but the schedule for that is not finalised yet.
"On this occasion we will remember and meet those who formed the nucleus of Dubai Police. Since then we have come a long way, and now we have security and legal experts capable of developing any force. Dubai Police has become a model of serious and productive work.
"In spite of the social composition and cultural diversification, rate of crime in Dubai is quite low. Figures talk and say that Dubai Police was the first Department to enter the race of excellence. Whoever says that our efficiency has diminished should look at our latest results.
"Our human capabilities today are better than many other areas, because we concentrated on developing our human resources. Thanks to the Leaders Qualification Programme launched by Shaikh Mohammad in 1980, we started since then delegating people to avail of scholarships. We believe that only the educated work force will be in control of the rudder. That was the result of collective work under the leadership of Shaikh Mohammad who gave every support to the police force since 1968.
"On this golden anniversary, we look forward to becoming one of the best forces in the world. We are ready to face organised crime. Our officers plan abortive strikes to face such crimes. I still believe that Dubai's CID will become the FBI of the Arab World because of the size of information they have, the appropriate follow-up and the swift action. I believe that the police force must be a positive partner in all occasions of society.
"I believe that Dubai Government Excellence Programme Award measures every Department by the services and practices it offers. We must participate in the activities of all sectors. Our presence whenever we were expected to be is very essential. The people must feel that we share their feelings and that they could easily and effortlessly reach us to avail of our services when needed."
