Police officers Vs Security Guards

Have you ever wondered why many Singaporeans are willing to pay a substantial amount of money to hire security guards for their condominiums, schools and offices? And to those residing in HDB flats, have you ever pay your neighbourhood police men for the 24hour security they provide you with? The answer to this is due to the difference in how we value the two different services.

People are willing to pay higher for a security guard because security guards provide personal security services to them. When hired, these security guards will ensure no trespassers or outsiders enter the vicinity without going through thorough procedures and safety checks. It is with this personal service that led to people paying security guards for their service.

Neighbourhood police officers are generally doing the same thing. The only different thing is that police don't do personal security. They are responsible for ensuring the safety of the neighbourhood and country at large. It is because of this impersonal service that they provide, people are not willing to pay for it, knowing that even if they were to pay the policemen to protect their neighbourhood, other neighbours staying in the same neighbourhood and who does not pay the police too will enjoy the same security. Due to this, nobody is willing to pay for a neighbourhood police for security. If police services were left to the market, there'll be no supply of policemen since there is nobody who is willing to pay for their services. No supply would mean that there won't be any police officers in the country. This cannot be the case because police services are vital for national security. The benefit of having a police in a country outweighs its cost. Some of the benefits include lower crime rate, secure housing environment, strategic and safe political and economic atmosphere. As a result of this, police services cannot be left to supply and demand or market operations. The government will have to intervene and provide these services for free to its citizens. Thus, police services are considered as a public good in almost all countries.