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New commander wants improved communications

The new regional commander for the Ontario Provincial Police North East Region says his police service has to be accountable and responsible to the community.
The new regional commander for the Ontario Provincial Police North East Region says his police service has to be accountable and responsible to the community.

And Chief Superintendent Allan Dawson, left, says the way he’ll accomplish that is through a good communications strategy and by getting out into the field to meet people face to face.

“We have to get the message out to our people and the communities what policing is about, and what the needs are for the policing services, and what we’d like to hear from the community is what they need,” said Dawson, who’s been an OPP member for 33 years.

“So distance management is probably my biggest concern, making sure we’re getting the message out, that we’re communicating well enough and that the communities are communicating to us as to what they need.”

Don't have all the answers
Dawson said he believes in the principles of community policing.

“The policing service can’t do everything by themselves, so I’m a strong proponent that we need to work closely with our communities and our First Nations communities, because we really don’t have all the answers,” Dawson told local reporters Tuesday at OPP North East Region headquarters.

Policing, Dawson said, is like a wheel, and police are only one spoke.

“In order for the wheel to go around we need all the spokes, so we have communities, we having policing partners, and certainly that makes for a nice smooth transition.”

Share similar philosophies
Another thing Dawson would like to accomplish is forging a strong relationship with media outlets in the region.

“If we don’t provide the information to the media you’re going to go look for it and we want the most accurate information available out there,” Dawson said.

“So in my opinion we provide all the information we possibly can and if we cannot provide the information we should give you a reason why not.”

Dawson believes media and police share a similar philosophy.

“We’re all investigative type individuals looking for answers, looking for evidence, or whatever the case may be, and we have a job to do and each of us has to appreciate what the other has to do.”

Identify what the issues are
Policing in Northern Ontario provides its own unique challenges because of the large distances involved, Dawson said.

“So what I like to do is meet people face to face and try to identify what the issues are. That’s the real challenge, getting out and meeting people, seeing what the issues are, and having people know you personally,” Dawson said.

One thing he wants to get “in tune with,” Dawson said, is issues involving First Nations communities.

“We have a lot of young people who are going to be our future leaders and we, as police officers, have to focus on those kids to develop and make sure they have the right perspective on life, that they’re leaders, and we have to work with them very closely,” Dawson said.

Try to accommodate those needs
Police visibility is another issue.

“The public likes to see more visibility no matter where we police and I think as a police agency we have to listen to what people are looking for and try to accommodate those needs,” Dawson said.

“But I guess what I’d like to say is that we have a number of officers patrolling the streets who aren’t necessarily visible in addition to all those who are.”

The OPP, Dawson said, works in conjunction with other police agencies in North Bay and the surrounding area.

“We are working in conjunction with them to keep the community safe.”

Runs in the family
Dawson takes over from Carson Fougere.

This is his second posting in North Bay.
In 1995 Dawson was transferred here and assigned to regional headquarters as the detective inspector for crime management.

Policing runs in the family, Dawson said.

His late father was an OPP officer, his brother is a retired OPP officer, and his daughter in an OPP community services officer in Parry Sound.