'It’s time they made a decision': Surrey residents losing patience over policing problem

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke released multiple videos on social media this week in support of keeping the RCMP as the city's police of jurisdiction.

"The RCMP statistics show crime has been trending down over the past 10 years," said Locke in one of her videos, which also targeted the municipal Surrey Police Service (SPS).

“SPS needs more than 550 officers to be deployed to reach full strength, while the RCMP needs just 170,” said Locke.

An SPS spokesperson sent a statement to CTV News.

“The only numbers that actually matter are those validated and verified by the province,” said Ian MacDonald, SPS spokesperson. "We await the ultimate decision from the provincial government that will determine the future of policing for this community."

In June, Surrey City Council sent a report to the province expressing its support and detailing its plan to keep the RCMP in Surrey while stopping the transition to the SPS.

“I must be satisfied that the City of Surrey’s plan will ensure effective and adequate policing is maintained in Surrey and throughout the province," said B.C. Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth. "Once staff have reviewed the city’s report, I will be able to determine if the plan achieves this objective."

The ministry did not provide a timeline of when a final decision would be made on the future of policing.

One police officer with the SPS also spoke out on social media, detailing the procedural issues with having two police agencies operating during this state of political police limbo.

“Because of the agreement that we have with the RCMP, we’re not allowed to be deployed at this time," said Insp. Tony Farahbakhchian with the SPS. "So our job function is strictly administrative, so we find it frustrating because we like to be on the road with the police officers.”

SPS confirmed to CTV News that dozens of officers of various ranks have yet to be deployed as they wait for a decision from the province. A hiring freeze is also in place. Meanwhile, Surrey taxpayers are losing patience.

“It’s been too long, messing back and forth, and it’s time they made a decision and got it over with,” said one Surrey resident.

“We’ll be a more unified city if we can just kind of get it over with sooner rather than later,” said another resident.

Locke's communications team turned down CTV News' request Friday for an interview.