Stay away from politics, Akufo-Addo tells cops

President Akufo-Addo believes officers and men of the Ghana Police Service can effectively carry out their constitutional mandate if they do not meddle in active politics.

He disclosed that when officers and men align themselves with some political parties, especially ruling parties, it affects not only their credibility, but their responsibility to society as well.

The president made the observation at the 48th graduation of Officer Cadet Corps at the Police Academy and Training School at Tesano in Accra yesterday.

He indicated that it’s incumbent on the police to remain neutral to develop the country.

President Akufo-Addo promised to ensure that the police service focuses on delivering its core mandate of ensuring peace, security and the establishment of law and order in the country.

“I envisage a police service that goes about its duty of protecting ordinary citizens, confident that they will be no interference from the powers that be,” he emphasised.

He was hopeful the police would continue to enhance their engagement with communities they serve in a more sustainable way to reduce crime.

“Men and women of the service must maintain a healthy relationship with the civilian population in line with the tenets of national integration and cohesion”, he charged them.

He urged the citizenry also to cooperate with the police and give them maximum backing in the discharge of their duties because “when the community and police work together, we can be assured of our safety and security.”

President Akufo-Addo reiterated the commitment of government to equip the police with logistics and infrastructure to enable them discharge their duties effectively and diligently to the people of Ghana, stressing that “we all feel safe and are able to undertake our day-to-day activities when we are assured of the peace and safety of our nation.”

He announced that government had started retooling the Police Service with over 300 vehicles while 320 housing units are under construction to ease the problems of accommodation facing the police.

The president revealed that the numerical strength of police personnel had been increased by 4,000 this year alone.

The president also disclosed that a considerable backlog of promotions of personnel had been cleared.

“Between January 2017 and now – some 22 months – a total of 795 promotions of senior police officers, and 16,623 promotions of junior ranks, have been effected,” he added.

He hinted that government was developing a comprehensive policy to enhance the professional competence and capacity of the police to assist them in dealing with cyber crimes and cyber security related issues.

He also indicated that the Marine Unit of the police would be equipped to work in tandem with the Ghana Navy to deal effectively with threats to Ghana’s maritime boundary and maritime resources.

President Akufo-Addo expressed concern about the 2017 Afro Barometer report, which highlighted corruption in the Police Service, saying “this can no longer be the status quo, the citizenry can only have confidence in the Police Service when they are seen to be honest and prepared to enforce the law without fear or favour.”

He, however, took solace in the fact that the current leadership of the Police Service is determined to stop the trend and urged the newly graduating class to assist in the endeavour.

Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Michael Bernard Adjei emerged the overall best cadet officer while one of the best investigators in the service, Charles Adaba, was presented with Commandant’s Special Award for Best Conduct, Organisation and Leadership skills.