Personnel shortfall hits Ghana Police in Upper West due to mass transfer

The Upper West Regional Police Command has suffered 117 police personnel shortfall after both senior and junior officers were transferred from the Region between September 2017 and May 2018 without corresponding replacement.

The Regional Police Public Relations Officer (PRO) ASP Joy Afagdzi told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the regional command was expecting 88 relievers (replacements) but only 14 have so far reported and have commenced duty.

He explained that the transfer was part of the normal police policy that allowed officers who had spent four years and above at their present station to seek transfer or be transferred to another station to continue their responsibilities of protecting life and property.

ASP Afagdzi was responding to complaints by some police officers in the region to the GNA that some of them who had spent between six and 13 years had been denied anytime they applied for transfers.

The situation is said to be mounting undue pressure on the officers because they have no sufficient time to rest.

The security personnel also claimed that some of the officers who came to the Region within three years or less had received their transfer letters and gone away placing additional responsibility on the few in the various units, particularly those on highway patrols.

“Look at me I have been here for more than years, now everybody in this community knows me, whether I am in uniform or not, and this is not good for our security,” one police officer who pleaded anonymity said.

“I tell you that some of our juniors came to this region, and less than two years they have been transferred again, and you wonder what is happening, I just came from night duty, I was supposed to rest but look I am preparing to go for duty again because of this short of personnel in our unit,” another police office said.

The PRO said though there had been such complaints of violation of transfer policy; the police administration was looking into those matters and to deal with them appropriately.

He also said as at the first quarter of 2018, the police personnel strength in Upper West stood at 1,047 and debunked the suggestion that security of the region could be compromised given the outstanding number of 74 police officers who were yet to report to the Region to start their duty.