Police urged to be professional in their operations

Pwalugu (UER), Sept. 6, GNA - The police were on Friday warned against detaining people in police cells over trivial matters, under flimsy excuses and collecting monies from suspects or their relatives before granting bail. Deputy Commissioner of Police and Upper East Regional Police Commander Ofosu-Mensah Gyeabour, who gave the warning, said the police administration would not tolerate shortcomings by police officers that would tarnish the good image of the service. He gave the warning when reviewing the passing out of 133 police recruits at Pwalugu near Bolgatanga. DCOP Gyeabour told the recruits that much was expected of them as there was a lot of work and challenges for the police and should be ready for all kinds of emergencies and carry out their duties strictly within the law.

"We now live in a world of mass indiscipline and the society expects us to have strength, skills, experience and courage to deal with this menace in our protection of life and properties, prevention of lawlessness and apprehension of those who break the law, no matter how desperate and dangerous the criminal or situation may be," he said. He advised them to remain neutral in all their assignments to meet the challenges of policing saying, "I entreat all of you to organize yourselves diligently so that you would be able to help sustain the goals enshrined in the forth-coming general elections". DCOP Gyeabour commended the recruits and told them that they had been equipped with skills that would enable them carry out their responsibilities.

However, he noted that the service was a challenging one, with many temptations and public criticism and they needed to stand firm and be honest in their decisions and judgment of situations that would confront them from time to time. "You must win and sustain public confidence which is vital to policing and intelligence gathering that cannot be achieved easily. You are passing out in an election year and your ability to make right judgment devoid of bias and favouritism to any political party would help to enhance the image of the service and give credence to your level of professionalism," he told them. The recruits underwent six months training at Pwalugu Police Training School and studied criminal investigation, criminal law, law of evidence, professional police ethics, English language and report writing. General Recruit James Owusu Sarpong was adjudged overall best recruit while Justina Quansah excelled in academics and Daniel Akakpo in Drill.