Railways and Ports Police to be revitalized

Accra, Jan. 18, GNA - The Police Administration is to revitalize Railways and Port Police, raising it to the status of a Regional Command.

With an Assistant Commissioner of Police as Head, the Command would oversee the policing of all the country's rail lines and seaports. A release signed by ASP Kwesi Ofori, Director of Public Affairs, Police Head Quarters, said Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Kofi Boakye, Director General in charge of Operations at the National Police Headquarters, said this when he and some officers of the National Headquarters and the Tema Regional Police Command interacted with officials of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) and the Tema Municipal Chief Executive.

It said ACP Boakye, whose visit took him to the Main Harbour, the car park and the Fishing Harbour, expressed surprise and frustration over loopholes in the security arrangements, noting that security was "non-existent".

The release said he announced that the Police Administration would dispatch about 20 junior personnel to beef up security at the Harbour. ACP Boakye asked the authorities of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) and the Tema Municipal Assembly to provide tents and other needed facilities in readiness for the personnel, who would be detailed on six months rotational basis, the release said. It said he also emphasized the importance of partnering in the fight against crime and gross indiscipline at the seaports. ACP Boakye gave the assurance that the Police Administration was determined to secure the ports and harbours from crime and disorder. The release said he commended the Tema Regional Police Command for recent strides in containing robbery in the Tema Municipality and the entire region.

The release said the Mr Ben Owusu Mensah, Director General of the GPHA, called for cooperation from all partners in the fight against crime and drug trafficking, which had surfaced at the Harbour. He asked for more Police patrols at the Tema port saying car stealing was the biggest security headache.