It's rare to find Belize's two political papers, the Guardian and the Belize Times agreeing about anything but today they did, and with good reason, it appears that their reports about a new top cop are accurate. 7NEWS has confirmed that decision makers in the Ministry of Home Affairs have agreed to make Assistant Commissioner of Police Gerald Westby, the next Commissioner.
Current commissioner Jose Carmen Zetina will leave the post in February after having been the first Belizean commissioner to serve on a contract basis for two years after the mandatory retirement age of 55. Zetina will reportedly go on to the immigration department to act as director. Westby, who is 49 years old, will be backed up by his deputy Maureen Leslie, who will also be promoted from assistant commissioner. She becomes the first woman officer ever to hold such a senior post.
With this appointment, which is expected to be officially announced shortly, Westby will become commissioner at the age of 49 with 29 years of service. In doing this, he leapfrogs a senior officer, ACP Bernard Lino, who will get a title as regional policing liaison.