Police won’t be appendage of my govt — Prez Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has given an assurance that his administration will ensure that the Ghana Police Service does not become an appendage of the government.
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He said the government envisaged that the Ghana Police Service would go about its duty of protecting ordinary citizens, confident that there would be no interference from the government
“As President, and together with the leadership of the Ghana Police Service, we will ensure that you are left to focus on your core mandate and not to be an appendage of my government. I envisage a Police Service that goes about its duty of protecting ordinary citizens confident that there will be no interference from the powers that be,” President Akufo-Addo said.
He was addressing the West Africa Security Service Association (WASSA), annual socialisation programme of the Ghana Police Service, in Accra yesterday.
Insulation from control
President Akufo-Addo said in a democracy, security services, such as the police, were expected to be politically neutral in the performance of their duties.
He said governments had term limits and that in a multiparty democracy, parties won and lost power for which reason it was good for the health of the nation that such a standard was maintained.
“This is why the Ghana Police Service should not be made to tie its well-being or otherwise to the fortunes of the ruling party of the day,” he urged.
The law, he said, was emphatic in the security services maintaining neutral outlook, adding that in that regard, it was in the interest of all Ghanaians that the Ghana Police Service retained the neutrality and professionalism guaranteed under the Constitution.
Four key targets
President Akufo-Addo said the government had selected four areas as key targets for ensuring that the Ghana Police Service lived up to the expectation in providing the needed security for every citizen of the country regardless of their geographic location.
The key areas are boosting the numbers of the service, ensuring a total breakaway and insulation from governmental control, provision of the required tools and resources for optimum performance and ensuring the best in terms of the welfare of personnel of the service.
“My government is determined to give whatever support is required to ensure that we have the service that the people of Ghana deserve,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo responding to cheers from the police. Picture SAMUEL TEI ADANO
Numbers
He said maintaining the Ghana Police Service to perform its traditional role meant that the state had to ensure the recruitment of more police personnel, saying there were less numbers of personnel manning the streets than the case should have been.
Buttressing his point, the President said throughout the world, an adequate police service was seen as central to the maintenance of law and order and the protection of the population.
“My government will continue the recruitment into the Ghana Police Service, with the aim of meeting the U.N ratio. We will also ensure gender equity in this regard. We must get a more professional Police Service, where recruitment and training practices are of acceptable international standards,” he assured.
Regaining lost public confidence
The President said it was common for the police, as an entity, to be equated to the public, as that underscored the level of confidence that the people ought to have in the police .
However, he said “currently, the Ghana Police Service, unfortunately, suffers lower public image than it should have. We seem to be back to the old days when a call to the police station was answered with “sorry, we have no car”, many calls are now answered with: “sorry we have no fuel.
“We will go back to the good old days of policing where people felt that all the efforts of the police were geared towards making their lives more comfortable,” he said.
Provision of required resources
Towards that end, he said the service, especially those within the Criminal Investigations Department would in the coming year, benefit from the use of modern tools of policing to facilitate their work.
In addition, President Akufo-Addo said, there were plans, as contained in the manifesto of the New Patriotic Party, to improve the accommodation need of the police, and build two new police hospitals in Sunyani and Bolgatanga to serve their health needs.
“We also intend to build two new police training schools, all this with the view to improving the quality of our Police Service and the welfare of police personnel,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo, therefore, urged the police personnel to continue to be professional in all their operations, so as to gain and maintain the trust of the people they had sworn to serve and protect.
President Akufo-Addo and two members of the Police Wives Association dancing to music provided by Abrantie Amakye Dede (left). Picture: SAMUEL TEI ADANO
