Major General Eduardo Alberto Then stated last week on “El Gobierno de la Mañana” radio talk show that the National Police would not recruit the children of single mothers. And boy, did that kick up a storm on social media. Entities from the Ministry of the Woman to former Vice President Margarita Cedeño took very vocal exception to this statement. It is estimated that a single mom heads 40% of Dominican households.
The radio program, “El Gobierno de la Mañana” would remove the audio, but social media had already spread the unfortunate statement. Since then, the general has been backpedaling to anyone who would listen.
Major General Then has been in the news a lot lately since he was the commanding officer of the Barahona region when some of his agents took down a really huge stash of cocaine. At the time, nothing was published on the August 2021 “tumbe,” but when in early November, a participating corporal was kidnapped by other policemen, just about everything came out. The happening has left many questions open as to the participation of the today director of the Police.
And now this. Major General Then tells this nation where single parent homes are almost endemic that the National Police would limit the recruitment of children of single mothers.
The major general is currently trying to repair fences. He went on record stating: “I expressed an idea that does not correspond to my thoughts or actions. At no time was there any intention in my remarks on the radio program El Gobierno de la Mañana to denigrate the image and sacrifice of Dominican mothers responsible for the upbringing and formation of their children, quite the contrary,” he said on Friday, 26 November 2021.
In his apology, he assured, after the protests of his original remark, that the children of single mothers do not have any restriction to enter the National Police, according to the regulations that govern that institution.
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29 November 2021
Update:
2 December 2021