Accra, July 20, GNA - Members of Parliament have been schooled on the rudiments of national security and the work of private security operatives in Ghana in view of the recent "targeted killings". Professor Eboe Hutchful, Executive Director, African Security Dialogue and Research (ASDR), explained that the growth of private security in the country was the evidence of the growing depth of crime and related issues.
"The proliferation of the non-state security sector thus has substantial implications in terms of both challenges and opportunities for security policy and delivery," he stated at the opening of the Fourth Ghana Parliamentary Capacity-Building Workshop. The workshop organised by ASDR in collaboration with the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Interior and the British High Commission in Ghana was on the theme: "Understanding and Regulating Private Security in Ghana."
Prof. Hutchful noted that, in spite of the Police Service (Private Security Organisations) Regulations 1992 (L.I. 1571), and the Police Service (Private Security Organisations) (Amended) Regulations 1994 (L.I.1579) there were still questions about the current state of monitoring, the administration and regulating the sector. He said there was concern of many Private Security Companies (PSCs) operating without the required licenses." and the current capacity within both the Ministry of Interior and Police Service to oversee the sector seems fragile".
There is even less regulation of community security and vigilante groups, which had acted often with impunity to impose 'instant justice', stressing: "a deeper problem still is the prevailing public anti-crime culture, with its demands for tough action and tolerance for extra-judicial measures".
He noted that a poorly regulated or trained Private Security Organisation (PSOs) could do considerable mischief and pose as potential threat to national security.
Prof. Hutchful therefore commended the Government for introducing a stricter licensing and enforcement regime.
Mr. Sabelo Gumedze, Senior Researcher, Defence Sector Programme, Institute for Security Studies of South Africa described the unprecedented growth of the private security industry in Africa as a major challenge.
He explained: "Africa being a continent of perpetual suffering and forever engulfed in complex challenges from lack of development to food insecurity, to weak culture of democracy to the general absence of peace and security, there would be aggravated insecurity on the continent if PSO operations are not holistically addressed."
He therefore urged the African Union and other sub-regional bodies to take a robust stand in addressing the influx of the private security sector into the continent, especially in conflict zones. Mr, Gumedze suggested that an effective regulation of the private security sector with Africa's peculiar challenges must focus on the extent of the private security industry, the effect of the privatization of security on human rights with special reference to vulnerable groups, including women and children.
Nana Adu Agyeman IV, President of the Association of Private Security Organization of Ghana (APSOG) assured the country that prospective employees of private security agencies would undergo stringent security scrutiny and be subjected to periodic checks during employment.
He however, called on the public and clients to alert the appropriate security authorities about any misconduct or activities of any individual and companies, which may compromise national security. The two-day workshop sought to provide a platform to the private security industry, parliamentarians, state security operatives and the media to dialogue candidly over issues affecting national security. Participants discussed the state of the private security industry, monitoring and regulation, gaps and deficits in their operations and the way forward and forms of collaboration between the police, PSCs and neighbourhood anti-crime organisations. Other topics included the role of PSCs and the informal security sector in a National Security Strategy, the spate of growing threat of armed robbery and should PSCs be authorized to handle lethal weapons?
