Dubai: As Dubai Police prepares to celebrate its 57th anniversary next year, veteran police officials who have been with the police service since its inception say Dubai can be proud of a force that has never forgotten its prime purpose — to keep the city safe and secure.
The police force has grown with Dubai and has earned a reputation among the community as tireless sentinels sworn to serve society.
Major General Abdul Rahman Mohammad Rafi, director of the Department of Community Services at Dubai Police told Gulf news in an exclusive interview that the late Shaikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum — who ordered the launch of Dubai’s regular police — established the force in January 1956 and assigned Captain Peter H. Clayton as its first director.
Following the order, civil guards who used to protect souqs were promoted as regular police officers and worked hard under Clayton to build a police service that has earned a reputation worldwide for its discipline.
Clayton was a stickler for discipline having worked formerly at the Oman base of the Trucial Oman Scouts of the Royal Air Force at the military base located in Sharjah at the location where the King Fisal Mosque stands now.
“The original headquarters of Dubai Police force was in Naif Fort and it was constructed in 1939, and was used as a prison until the founding of the force in 1956,” said Rafi in an interview. “The Dubai Police force was founded on June 1, 1956 in Naif in Deira at Bandar Talib Area near the existing herbal souq now.”
At the time, Dubai Police had only six to nine officers of different nationalities, one of whom, Khalifa Bin Daen, is still in active service.
Two years from its formation, Dubai Police came to be helmed by a British Major who expected absolute discipline within the ranks.
“In 1958-1965 a British Major Peter George Loremer was in charge of police during a tenure that was described as harsh and aggressive. A building of two floors used to be shared by municipality and police,” Rafi recalled.
Loremer was in charge for seven years. “The size of the force increased gradually, to 105 in 1960 and to 430 by 1967,” Rafi added. At the time, there was no police chief but an officer in charge of police.
Major General Rafi said that, in 1973, the Dubai Police moved its headquarters to the current location in Al Nahda which was a deserted area at the time. That building now accommodates the human rights department and immigration section as well. “In 2006, police moved to the brand new headquarters nearby.”
The police started off having different departments and sections that followed the British police system.
“Later on His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, was appointed head of police and security and he concentrated on appointing Emiratis to take charge of various departments of the police,” he said. “The leadership decided to train Arab nationals to be in charge of all the newly established departments which included Dubai police, Dubai Customs, immigration, water authority and others.”
Police used to be trained at the “mobile forces training school,” which used to be at the Department for Organisation Security and Emergency in Jumeirah area.
“Police cadets used to be trained at the mobile forces following the British police training system while the official language at police was only English,” he said.
The first graduate class of Dubai Police included Lieutenant-General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, the current Chief of Dubai Police.
“In 1965-1975 Loremer was replaced by Jack Bricks, a former officer of the British forces in Palestine. Bricks used to speak fluent Arabic, after leaving Dubai, Bricks worked as deputy of the police chief in Qatar. In 1956 till early 1970 it was hard for police to recruit; people used to avoid this job because of the link between police and British occupation, and people never encouraged their children to work for police,” Major General Rafi recalled.
“The population of Dubai then was less than 30,000, people used to earn very low incomes after a financial recession that hit the whole world during those days,’ he said. “Late Shaikh Rashid started thinking of a way to help people by building many specialised markets, so he built the weapon and the charcoal [Al Damam] market in Al Ras area in Reqaat Al Butain. He also built the markets for homeware, textile, carpenter, blacksmith, dates, beans, glass [Al Manzer], scent and fish which still exist in the same location.”
The moves helped the emirate financially and the first ship to enter Dubai called a halt at Khor Dubai, which used to be considered an international port. Al Rifaa was established in the 1970s to secure the Bur Dubai region.
Recalling the time when he joined the police, Major General Rafi said he wanted to join the military. “We used to see late Shaikh Maktoum, the head of Scouts in Dubai, and wanted to be like him, I really wanted to wear a uniform and be proud of myself, uniforms represent discipline for me. When I worked at Dubai government in October 1967, I had to wear a uniform. I worked at Dubai airport and at the customs issuing tickets for people using Al Maktoum Bridge. I used to charge half dirham from trucks and quarter dirham for cars to pass the bridge.”
Eventually, Rafi recalls, “Dubai police’s reputation became brighter and people started applying for jobs at police and I was one of them.I went for training at the royal police academy in Jordan. I worked at police as security officer and then I worked at the traffic department which was near Al Muraqabat police station now.
“From 1975 to 1980, the chief of police was Colonel Abdullah Khalfan Belhoul, with Colonel Al Gaith as deputy. At the time, Dubai Police comprised 10 departments,” he said.
Maj Gen Rafi said that, from 1980 until now, Dubai Police have operated under the leadership of Lietenant General Dahi, who started his career with Dubai Police in 1970, going on to hold several positions before being appointed as acting-chief from 1977 to 1980. In March 1980, he was promoted to the rank of colonel and appointed Chief of Dubai Police, becoming the youngest police chief in the world.
“I worked with Bricks, with Belhoul and Lt Gen Dahi,” Rafi declares proudly.
