Hundreds of uniformed and plainclothes police officers assembled at the main Police Headquarters on Thursday to demonstrate unified support for one of their own, Senior Sergeant Benjamin, who faces the potential loss of a leg after a devastating on-duty injury. The gathering quickly evolved into a peaceful sit-in after officers confirmed that Benjamin has yet to be approved for transfer to an overseas medical facility for specialized care, weeks after he was struck by a truck while working along Valley Road in the Golden Grove district.
Speaking on behalf of the assembled rank-and-file officers, George Wenner told reporters that the law enforcement community is deeply frustrated by the government’s slow response to what they characterize as a life-altering medical emergency. “These officers are standing shoulder to shoulder with their injured colleague, and they will not back down until he is flown out for the treatment he needs,” Wenner stated, emphasizing that every day of delay raises the risk that Benjamin will require amputation of his injured leg.
Wenner drew a sharp comparison between the government’s handling of Benjamin’s case and a separate high-profile medical incident involving a former senior government official. In that earlier case, Wenner claimed, authorities moved rapidly to organize multiple medical evacuation flights to get the former official access to overseas specialist care. No such urgency has been extended to the injured serving officer, he argued.
He went on to note that police officers across the country regularly put their own lives in jeopardy to protect public safety, from carrying out national security operations to stepping up security preparations for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), a major international summit set to be hosted in the region in the coming months. When officers are injured in the line of this vital public service, Wenner argued, they are entitled to the same rapid, high-priority support that the government extends to political leaders and former officials.
The officers directly targeted Health Minister Michael Joseph in their appeal, issuing an urgent call for the minister to cut through bureaucratic red tape and authorize an emergency medical evacuation immediately. “We are calling on Minister Joseph to act immediately, post haste, to arrange a medivac to fly Senior Sergeant Benjamin out to access the specialized medical care he cannot get here,” Wenner said.
Protesting officers made clear that their demonstration will not end until the government confirms arrangements for Benjamin’s transfer for urgent overseas treatment. As of Thursday evening, no official response from the Health Ministry or the government had been issued to the officers’ demands.