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Corporal Rohan James, chairman of the Jamaica Police Federation, has said it appears the current Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Government has broken the promise it made when in Opposition in 2016, of ensuring proper remuneration for rank and file men and women of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).Before the JLP took over leadership of the country in 2016, the then Opposition Leader Andrew Holness, during his speech at a JLP conference, declared, "the first thing we have to do is to get our police to feel appreciated again". Holness had also highlighted, in that 2016 address, that the morale of members of the JCF was very low and bemoaned that attrition was more than 800 that year.Holness added that if Jamaica is to fight crime, then the crime fighters must be made to feel happy, appreciated and motivated."Jamaica Labour Party makes a commitment that we will look very closely at the remuneration of policemen. We will look very closely at the conditions and terms of policemen to ensure that they are comfortable in the fight against crime," Holness said in 2016.In an interview with the Jamaica Observer on Tuesday, James pointed to the 2016 comments of the now prime minister as he argued that the Holness Administration has failed to do what is important to protect the well-being and welfare of the men and women of the force."The Government needs to wake up and smell the coffee and take every single citizen's life as important and allow the security forces, through policy directive and direction, to be able to operate at optimal level. It requires the resources, as well as remuneration, for the men and women to continue to serve effectively,"said James as he declared that if properly paid and resourced, the members of the JCF would be more inclined to go above and beyond in the fight against crime."You cannot be working in the constabulary force, where there is the issue of the welfare of the men and women serving long hours, and Government still has not come to the realisation that they must be compensated for hours worked. They can continue to procrastinate and point fingers at the Opposition. I care zero about who is in Opposition from who is in Government."A Government is in place so I expect accountability and I expect people to live up to their responsibilities. Enough is enough and the Government must ensure that not only the citizens of Jamaica must endeavour to feel safe and secure in the land of Jamaica, but those who are in the Diaspora who wish to come home," added James.On January 11, the United States warned its citizens travelling to Jamaica that there was an increased risk of crime in Kingston; Montego Bay, St James; and Spanish Town, St Catherine. On January 10, Canada also warned its citizens that violent crime, including armed robbery and murder, is a problem in Jamaica despite the presence of police to counter criminal activity.James added that irrespective of the level of brilliance possessed by those advising the prime minister on important matters such as national security, he should still do his best to ensure the men and women are properly remunerated, as this will motivate the cops to do more to dent crime.The police federation chairman also took issue with new units being created within the JCF while the entity, as a whole, suffers from a lack of resources and low remuneration for its members."The Government needs to ensure that it offers the JCF the necessary resources as well as capital for them to be properly remunerated. They established the Financial Investigations Division, the Major Organised Crime and Anti-corruption Agency and the Independent Commission of Investigations and they resource those entities to divide and rule."Over the years the force has been marginalised and everybody feels that the constabulary force is a failure, when in fact it is those who have been elected who are failing the institution and the people of Jamaica. It is time we stop playing with the people's lives and stop taking the citizens as statistics and mere numbers," declared James.The police federation has taken the Government to court over its failure to pay millions in overtime sums from as far back as 2008 to cops.The trial is set for April 4 and 5, but the cops are hopeful that the matter will be settled before then. A pre-trial hearing is set for March 10.The federation and the Government are also yet to reach agreement on a new wage deal for the rank and file members of the force.