The Mystery of Police at Street Junctions
People living in Accra have become accustomed to the sight of police personnel standing at street junctions throughout the nation’s capital. In some cases they have vehicles and tents which create the impression of at least semi-permanent residence at those road joints.
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Apparently, this widespread police presence is part of what is known as Police Visibility and Accessibility Patrols which have been in place since February 2013. I believe this applies to the whole country. The question is: what do these police officers ACTUALLY do?
I know what they are expected to achieve. At its inception we were told that the new IGP was setting up this unit to help reduce the fear of crime and reassure the population of police protection. I publicly applauded this new direction in Ghana although police visibility as a crime-fighting tool is not new in other countries.
A survey by Her Majesty’s Police Inspectorate in the United Kingdom published in March 2011 titled “Police visibility: Demanding Times” concludes thus in its executive summary: “Forces must organise their resources so that the highest possible proportion of officers and other police staff are available to meet the needs of the public. At no time in the past has this been more important than now: in this age of austerity, the police will have to make hard choices about how they use their resources”.
I think the idea of visible police is excellent. Hitherto, the police had been confined to their offices and it was rare to see a policeman or policewoman on actual duty outside in any community.
However, even the present situation falls far short of the ideal. The notion that police presence should be restricted to static positions at road junction is strange. We can see them at street corners alright but doing what?
The reason I am baffled is that I have observed too many traffic and other laws being broken right under police noses without arousing the least interest from the personnel of the force.
The most common of these infractions is motorcyclists running through the red at traffic light junctions. It appears that over a long period of impunity, motorcycle riders in this country have removed themselves from the normal rules of road traffic, especially where starts and stops are mandatory.
One would have thought that after more than 15 months of visible policing this kind of routine infractions would be a thing of the past. This has not been the case. Instead motorcyclists disobey the law right where the police have pitched camp, usually as the latter stand chatting or making phone calls.
As we all know, ineffective visible policing has consequences. Last Monday two people on a motorbike snatched a young man’s briefcase as he returned from college. He had his laptop and other valuables and documents in the bag.
This happened in front of an estate on the Spintex Road and their escape took them through a set of traffic lights. A couple of drivers tried to chase the thieves but what happened next was ridiculous. The thieves got to the traffic light which was on red and sped through.
Of course, the chasers had to wait. The police did not bat an eyelid because a motorcyclist running through red is normal. If, as a general rule, the police prevented motorcyclists from jumping red, the thieves could have been isolated and caught.
Another incident occurred three Sundays ago at the Dzorwulu junction on the Bush Highway in Accra. Four vehicles, including a very long one, ignored the red light and sped through.
Two policemen were standing by completely unconcerned with what was happening, presumably under their watch. I went over to find out from them why they were allowing such things to go on. I asked them what their “orders” were coming to the spot. They looked rather distressed as if I had asked them for the name of the President of Serbia and Montenegro!
I asked them whether it was part of their job to stop bad traffic behaviour and if so how they were going on about it. After giving all kinds of excuses why they cannot do the jobs for which they were paid, they told me this, which I paraphrase: there is no point arresting any person who breaks the law because all it takes is one phone call from a senior officer and the person would be released. I asked them how widespread this practice was, and they replied almost in unison: it happens all the time.
Personally, I don’t believe that this happens “all the time”. I had heard this expression from previous conversations with different policemen before and I suspect that it has become part of the lore, a kind of shorthand explanation for not doing what is required of them. On the other hand, I am a common civilian; what do I know?
Whether or not police do their duty is extremely important because unless we get the right kind of police work we labour in vain on all other fronts. However, as with all human activities, we can only get the police to the right thing if they know what the right thing is to do.
I cannot help but ask whether the policemen and women standing at street corners know what they are expected to do once they get there. My impression is that the police hierarchy must make us and the police aware of what they are supposed to do at street junctions.
At the moment their presence may be reassuring but only if we know what they can and will do to help us. Their absences are equally baffling. While it has become standard practice to find police at traffic light junctions when the lights are working, the reverse is not always true.
There have been times when you cannot find a single police person when the lights are not working. Probably, the most reassuring principle as far as public safety is concerned must be consistency; knowing where and how to find help.
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Don’t get me wrong. I support the principle of police visibility and wish it could be extended into our communities. I also think that as the recent Mamobi incident shows, we need more interactions between the police and the public and such interactions should be dynamic, flexible and personal.
The British report I cited above says this: “Research indicates that one of the most successful ways of increasing perceived police effectiveness is by improving the visibility of (and so familiarity with) the police through foot patrols and problem-solving in with the community”.
The IGP has introduced a good thing but he and his management must now ensure that we get the full benefit of this policy.