Police to partner Human Rights Group to bring activities of kidnappers in Ghana to a halt

The Ghana Police Service has expressed readiness to partner and support the Human Rights Reporters Ghana(HRRG) in its sensitization campaigns aimed at bringing the gruesome activities of kidnappers in the country to a halt.

In a letter dated April 26, 2019 signed by the Director of Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Police Service Supt. Sheila Kessie Abayie-Buckman(Mrs.) and addressed to the HRRG’s Executive Director, Mr. Joseph Kobla Wemakor, the police gave their assurance and willingness to support a worthy cause to ensure that the human rights group achieve its noble objectives of making Ghana a better place devoid of discrimination among others for all.

“The Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Police Service wishes to assure you of our readiness to partner with you in support of your Kidnapping, Teenage Pregnancy and Tramadol Abuse(KTT) project”., the letter quoted.

The sensitization campaign which falls under the KTT Project (Kidnapping, Teenage Pregnancy and Tramadol Abuse) of the vibrant human rights group seeks to rid Ghana of gross human rights abuses it is faced with and help promote in its entirety the development of youths (children, girls and women) in the country.

According to the Executive Director of Human Rights Reporters Ghana, Mr. Joseph Kobla Wemakor, the move to partner with the police has become crucial and it’s happening at the time the nation is confronted with staggering issues of human rights abuses including the phenomenon of kidnapping which has gained notoriety in the country.

“We believe this partnership will be of mutual benefit to us all (Police, HRRG and other stakeholders) and will also help augment our KTT sensitization campaign project which currently in its execution stage to cover schools across all the regions of Ghana”.

The phenomenon of kidnapping has rocked the country since 2018 and now become the biggest national security threat in Ghana today.

The three missing Takoradi girls, recent kidnapping of some expatriates and abduction and killing of some children among others have heightened public fear.

The police have come under intense pressure to rescue the three girls who were kidnapped in Takoradi, the Western Region.

The issue has caught the attention of President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Monday who broke his silence on recent cases of kidnapping in the country with an assurance that tough decisions are being taken by government to decisively deal with the matter.

Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG) is an NGO, founded in February 2019 with the aim of working to promote and defend the fundamental human rights of people particularly children, girls, and women in Ghana.

It is in recognition of the fact that children, girls and women are the hardest hit since the issue of kidnapping reared its ugly head in the country, the Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG) has taken the initiative to launch its campaign project to help educate and enlighten people of all ages on the phenomenon of kidnapping which has become a serious national issue.

The KTT project in its pilot stage since February 2019 has taken education on kidnapping to over 1,500 school children in some parts of Accra and when the project finally rolls out in May, it is expected to further help educate the populace across the regions.

“This, we believe will help build local capacity to deal with the issue in the area of education and sensitization while the police do their part to bring the menace under control and perpetrators to book”, said Mr. Wisdom Kojo Eli Hammond, Project Coordinator of the Human Rights Reporters Ghana(HRRG).

Mr. Hammond furthered: “As a human rights group, we believe, we cannot achieve the collective goal of halting the kidnapping challenge facing Ghana alone without the support of the Ghana Police Service who is our key stakeholder in the fight for the rights of people in Ghana”.

He called on the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service(GES) including other stakeholders in the country and beyond to come on board, help partner and support the Human Rights Reporters Ghana and the police to expeditiously bring the activities of kidnappers in the country to a halt.