Deputy Commissioner (Management) Ma Wai-luk officiated at the Oath of Office Ceremony for new recruits at Police College's Aberdeen Campus on August 8 to mark a major milestone for the new Probationary Inspector (PI) and Recruit Police Constable (RPC) Professional Diploma programmes.  The recruits attending the ceremony comprised 37 PIs and 207 RPCs who enrolled in 36-week and 27-week training programmes on August 4 and July 21 respectively.  They will be the first batch of officers to be awarded the professional diplomas under the Hong Kong Qualifications Framework (HKQF) by Police College.

 

The newly revised PI and RPC training programmes were accredited by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) on June 26.  Upon completion of training, the PIs will be awarded the Professional Diploma in Leadership and Management in Policing at QF Level 5 (at the same level of a Bachelor's Degree in the academic sector) and RPCs the Professional Diploma in Policing at QF Level 4 (at the same level of an Associate Degree or a Higher Diploma in the academic sector).

 

Police College, neither a tertiary institution nor a professional association, is the first training organisation amongst government departments to acquire an accreditation status to run professional training programmes under the HKQF at Level 4 and Level 5. This major milestone underscores Police College's high standard of professional training and reaffirms it as a centre of excellence in police training and development.

 

Other guests who witnessed this significant event were the Deputy Secretary for Education, Mr Lo Sai-hung, Vice-Chairman of HKCAAVQ, Dr Chan Siu-kun, and General Manager of Qualifications Framework Secretariat, Mr Patrick Pang.

 

Addressing the recruits, Mr Ma stressed the importance of Force vision and values and called on them to commit themselves to serving the society.  As recruit training, comprising policing knowledge, practical skills and positive values, would be hard and intensive, all recruits must remain highly self-disciplined, diligent, and resolute to cope with the training and face challenges and difficulties, said Mr Ma.

 

Finally, Mr Ma encouraged the recruits to discharge their duties with a positive attitude, passion and integrity after passing out from Police College. 

 

The Oath of Office is a solemn and legally bounded ceremony.  Every police officer will, before taking up his duties, take an oath before a gazetted police officer, according to Section 26 of the Police Force Ordinance, Cap.232, Laws of Hong Kong.