Decrepit State of Federal Police Buildings: The Urgent Need for Renovation and Maintenance

2023-08-10 18:00:00

“It’s totally outrageous. There are buildings in which colleagues no longer dare to enter. It’s unhealthy, insecure and it’s been going on for years” exclaims, from the outset, Eddy Quaino, representative of the CGSP Police (socialist union). If the Liégeois evokes at length the case of the federal judicial police (PJF) of Liège, he explains that the dilapidation of the premises affects, in fact, the whole of the federal police. “Liège is emblematic of a much larger problem, 80% of the buildings are concerned”, specifies Vincent Gilles, of the SLFP Police (liberal union).

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As a reminder, we learned on Wednesday that 43 PJF offices in Liège were closed following a consultation meeting between representatives of the PJ, the police unions and the general administrator of the Régie des Bâtiments. A first meeting had taken place regarding ten days ago, following the fall of a plasterboard from the false ceiling. An assessment pointed to 71 problematic offices, including 43 with a higher risk due to dilapidation. On Wednesday, the unions demanded a temporary closure of the problematic premises.

Police station 8 ©La Libre Belgique Police station 5 ©La Libre Belgique

A decision will be made on a possible extension of the closure by Friday. “What we want to express today is a general fed up,” denounces Eddy Quaino.

Deferred operations

General, because other police buildings are concerned. Charleroi, Namur, Dinant, to a lesser extent Antwerp and Brussels, but also Vottem where the National Academy of the Federal Police was painfully installed, before being moved to the former offices of Belgacom, in Jemeppe-sur-Sambre. “The premises in Vottem are simple: they are containers, installed in the 1970s for a lifespan of thirty years. We are in 2023, so I’ll let you do the math”, plague Eddy Quaino. “It’s a vestige of the post-war period, prefabs in which police officers had to stay temporarily, but that we installed in there without worrying too much regarding their fate followingwards”, confirms Vincent Gilles.

The leader of the liberal union also mentions premises which, in appearance, are more modern but are problematic. This is particularly the case of the RAC in Brussels (headquarters of the Brussels PJF), and of the Portalis, where we find in particular the public prosecutor’s office of the Brussels King. “At RAC, we have no warranty as to the maintenance of the ventilation system. At Portalis, the cells are not cleaned regularly, which means that we face real health risks.” And to add: “In Charleroi, there is one toilet for thirty people. In Eupen, the premises had to be temporarily closed due to an electrical incident. In Antwerp, they no longer have a kitchen, and the list goes on! “

Police station 2 ©La Libre Belgique

Between heating, electricity or cleanliness problems, collapsing ceilings, cracking walls and obsolete Internet connections, the federal police are suffering, hammer the unions. And that carries over to the field work. “The PJF of Liège is the third judicial police in the country. With organized crime and the war on drugs, there is a lot of work. But how do you want to work in such a context?, asks Eddy Quaino. We are asked to avoid psychosis, but psychosis comes from crumbling ceilings and cracking walls, not from us.”

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Old-fashioned legacy of the gendarmerie

Why is the federal police so badly off? To understand this, you have to go back to the police reform of the 2000s. After the police reform, there were repairs, tinkering here and there, but nothing significant”, explains Vincent Gilles.

Police station 6 ©La Libre Belgique Police station 4 ©La Libre Belgique

Moreover, the federal police does not own its buildings and depends, for this, on the Régie des Bâtiments. who is overwhelmed. Between the courthouses (including those of Brussels and Liège), prisons and police premises to renovate or build, there is work. And a closed and limited budget envelope. There is even talk of a deficit of 34 million euros. “Normally, we say that there is a cake to share. Here, we can squarely speak of a small toast as the means are pokey. And then, there were choices that made some police officers react, continues Vincent Gilles. For example, it is very unpleasant for colleagues to learn that 15 million were found for the police carousel. Good for the cavalry and the horses, but what is the message sent to the rest?

And Vincent Gilles concludes: “The police are the showcase of public services. The situation clearly reflects the state of decay of this public service”.

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Contacted, the office of Secretary of State Mathieu Michel (MR), in charge of the Régie des Bâtiments, reacted. “I very clearly regret this situation (in Liège) which is an unfortunate case, like many others, a legacy of the past; a previous folder that had not been supported properly. I did not wait before reacting, explains the Michel cabinet. We know very clearly that the work of the Federal Judicial Police is important, fundamental and essential for our security and that it is my duty to guarantee them good working conditions. It is for this reason that we work in the short, medium and long term. This would begin, temporarily, with the provision of two floors of the Tour des Finances (de Liège, Editor’s note) and a gradual migration to Blocks M and E as soon as they are refurbished in accordance with compliance rules.

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