By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 10, 2018 — Bahamians generally should be extremely proud of the excellent manner in which His Excellency Ellison Greenslade, QPM, is representing The Bahamas as High Commissioner to Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As the country’s top diplomat in London, High Commissioner Greenslade continues to demonstrate the same high level of professionalism that he routinely displayed as Commissioner of the Royal Bahamas Police Force for seven years (2010-2017) prior his appointment as High Commissioner to the Court of St. James on November 15, 2017.
I got to know High Commissioner Greenslade very well when he was Assistant Commissioner of Police in Charge of the Northern Region of The Bahamas — including Abaco, Bimini and The Berry Islands — and I was Editor of the Freeport News in Grand Bahama.
On more than one occasion, I praised his “get-involved” administrative style and crime-fighting initiatives in my editorials or in my personal column, OSWALD BROWN WRITES. I can still recall a classic photo we published in the Freeport News of him in the bucket of crane helping to provide assistance to residents trapped in the Queen’s Cove area of Freeport during one of the powerful hurricanes that caused considerable damage to Grand Bahama.
As noted in this excerpt from Wikipedia, “He was highly praised for his leadership during the investigation of the disappearance of the five missing boys on Grand Bahama. He was also acclaimed for his leadership of search and rescue operations after several hurricanes that passed over the Bahamas, including Frances (2004), Jeanne (2004), and Wilma (2005).”
There is a body of opinion that the political winds of change may have been responsible for the end of Police Commissioner Greenslade’s law-enforcement career and the beginning of diplomatic career that may very well set a standard for “performance excellence” for future Bahamian diplomats. A review of his growth and development from his birth on May 24, 1961, as documented by Wikipedia, strongly suggests that his life’s accomplishments so far is because the “pursuit of excellence” has perpetually been a motivating factor.
After graduating “at the top of his class at the Bahamas Police Training College as recruit-constable,” according to Wikipedia, Greenslade continued studies on a part-time basis and subsequently obtained an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration from the College of The Bahamas. He went on to complete a number of executive level courses in professional studies in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States, including “Senior Police Administration (SPAC- RCMP Canada in 1994), International Commanders Program (ICP – Bramshill UK in 1997), International Strategic Leadership program (ISLP – Bramshill UK in 2005) and a wide range of law enforcement courses in The USA.”
He holds a postgraduate degree in police management and law enforcement from the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom and an MBA from the University of Miami, from where he graduated in 1997.
Greenslade joined the Executive Management Team of the Royal Bahamas Police Force upon being promoted to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police in July of 2000 after serving in a number of Divisional command positions. Upon his promotion, in 2000, he was transferred to Freeport, Grand Bahama, where he led a team of 430 sworn officers, 120 Reservists, and 15 civilian support staff members.
After such a stellar career in law-enforcement, he has transferred his zeal for “performance excellence” to the diplomatic arena. He is an expert in computer technology, and I get the opportunity to interact with him almost daily at the High Commission via twitter or emails when I require information on an event he attended in his capacity as Bahamas High Commissioner or when a Bahamian visiting London pays a courtesy call on him at the High Commission.
An example of his proficiency is this tweet that was posted with a collage of photos on his twitter page on December 8: “Truly proud of these distinguished members of the Bahamian Diaspora in the United Kingdom who participated during the Bahamas High Commission’s Carol Service this evening at Grosvenor Chapel Mayfair London! 242 Pride🇧🇸.”
Another tweet with a similar among of photos noted: “Truly proud of these outstanding musicians who gave awe inspiring performances at the Bahamas High Commission’s Carol Service this evening at Grosvenor Chapel Mayfair London! What a wonderful way to start the Christmas season! 242 Pride🇧🇸.”
The jury may still be out on how well The Bahamas’ other diplomats around the world are performing, but the verdict has already been rendered on our top diplomat in London: He is doing a fantastic job.
