Government has the capacity to deal with the pace of armed robbery in the country and is really on top of the challenge posed by the level of armed robberies in the country.
A Deputy Minister for Interior, Mr. Kobi Acheampong, speaking at a forum in London for Ghanaians in the United Kingdom, observed that “we can deal with the situation and we are dealing with it.”
He said many security strategies have been put in place while others are being hatched to help address the problem which is of a high security concern to the government.
The forum which was organised by the Ghana Union – UK, in conjunction with the Ghana High Commission in the UK, was jointly sponsored by the Ghana Home Loans, Unity Link Financial Services, Omanye Group of Companies among others, and attended by large number of Ghanaians from around the UK.
It formed part of programmes to bring Ghanaians in the UK together to formulate strategies towards the development of the country and also afford members of the community to enquire about issues bothering their minds on national development.
The forum also provided the platform for government officials and departments to share their visions and challenges with the members of the community.
High on the agenda were issues on Dual Citizenship, Armed Robbery, Social Care, Trade and Investment. Other issues raised included, the strong bureaucracy in administration, customs and excise, clearing of cars as well as land acquisition.
Mr. Acheampong noted that the menace of armed robbery has been in the Ghanaian society for a long time and it is now becoming more sophisticated with the upsurge of technology. According to him, it is the duty of government to provide sound security to the people and the government will never shirk such a responsibility.
He outlined measures that would help address the nuisance which included enough radio facilities for the police service.
In an instance, he expressed the view that police stations are far from the high ways where armed robberies are currently on the increase and police have to travel far for operations when there are cases.
“The Spanish government, have provided us with some radio frequency facilities to improve the situation and reduce the logistic nightmare.” He noted.
Mr. Acheampong expressed regret that the major private transport operators are thwarting the efforts of government to ensure the safety of passengers especially from armed robbery.
He said government plans to put one armed police escort on each of the passenger buses plying on the roads have met resistance from these private transport associations who are demanding that the police men pay for the fares. A situation described by the Deputy Minister as uncooperative and unfair.
“We have enough policemen to do that work but our efforts are being thwarted by such moves.” He added.
According to Mr. Acheampong the ministry intends to install tracking devises on all buses to help track vehicles and send police rescue teams when cases of armed robbery are reported but this again has been opposed by the drivers for obvious reasons. “But we will pass the law and force it on their throat.” He hinted.
He said the time has come for the country to set up priority measure to address such a serious security problem. Citing the USA as an example, The Deputy Minister noted that America for instance has to put in place serious security measure after the infamous 11th September incident “and this is what we also have to do as a country.” He said
“What we are trying to do is to set up a national emergency venture. We will keep the passengers and all Ghanaians safe and we will need the cooperation of all to achieve this. He said
