Independent police service will help drastically reduce corruption - Governance Expert

Governance Expert Williams Amofa has cautioned that if the country wants to combat corruption by strengthening institutions, the police institution must be the first point of call.

According to him, our constitution has made it impossible to make the Ghana Police Service independent and that is affecting the corruption fight in the country.

Speaking to Sefa Danquah on the ‘Epa Hoa Daben’ show, he explained: “If we will have to strengthen institutions, institutions such as police must be stand alone.

"There is no way you can convince me that if the President appoint the IGP there will be no favouritsim. It will definitely be there. This is because it is the president who appointed such a person.”

He believes that if the Police is empowered to be independent, there will be less cases of corruption in the country.

“If the police had its own internal structures and one who has served the police for a long time, has gotten to the point of serving as the IGP, and such a person is given that position, then the dynamics in Ghana will change.

"This is because the police will be independent. So even if you politically push them to do something, these people will not be inclined to do it”, he added.

Meanwhile, William Amofa is of the view that uprooting corruption from the Ghanaian system starts from the moral values we instill in us.

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), who acts as the head of the Police service and is responsible for the operational control and the administration of the Police, is appointed by the President of Ghana acting in consultation with the Council of State.