Bogota authorities say they need six thousand more policemen to guarantee security for the city’s residents.
According to the city’s Government Secretary Clara Lopez, the capital needs some 23 thousand policemen to take care of its 7 million inhabitants, but only has 17 thousand men, including 7 thousand rookies.
Despite a growing number of people living in the capital, the number of policemen stayed the same, the government official said. “With less than 20 thousand policemen, you can’t do the job,” Lopez told Caracol Radio.
National Police director Oscar Naranjo promised the capital an extra 2 thousand men to strengthen the city’s intelligence unit that is responsible for battling the city’s many criminal gangs, but according to the local government that will not be enough.
According to Caracol Radio, in Colombia there is one policeman for very 303 citizens, while in Bogota there is one for every 447. The international standard is one cop per 236 inhabitants.
Despite the alleged shortage of policemen, Lopez did stress authorities were able to arrest more than 22 thousand criminals so far this year. Nevertheless, inhabitants of the capital increasingly feel unsafe.
