Police Commissioner, Dr Kevin Blake, has asserted that justices of the peace (JPs) play a far more significant role in society than just signing documents.
Blake stressed that JPs are, in fact, partners in nation building and public safety.
“When a justice of the peace signs forms for a passport, or verifies a photograph, what you’re doing is you’re protecting the integrity of an immigration system of a society,” said Blake at a Ministry of Justice virtual sensitisation session on Thursday night.
He explained that “a lot of faith” is placed in a passport.
“And I use that example because it so profound; that document that is called a passport is basically an unwritten contract between your state and various other countries, saying to them that the holder you see of this document that has Jamaica on it, is produced with a system that is beyond reproach, which is the highest level of integrity.
“And so, the risk to your country by giving access to this individual is low,” Blake stated.
He also highlighted the importance of JPs in maintaining the stability of the local financial sector.
“And if you take a justice of the peace signing a document for an individual who may need to conduct business with a bank, it is actually protecting the financial sector, because just imagine that (that) type of authenticity is not there, and persons were able to take fraudulent documents… to the bank and achieve a loan.
“You can have a major breakdown in the financial sector (if that happens),” the commissioner said.
As a JP himself, Blake reiterated his call for his fellow JPs to recognise the gravity of their role in upholding the integrity of various systems and protecting the country’s interests.
