Police-Media cooperation is necessary to check crime

Ho, June 4, GNA - Mr. Emmanuel Bossman Ansong, Volta Regional Police Commander on Friday said the correlated responsibilities of the Media and the Police made it imperative for the two institutions to promote mutual grounds of cooperation.

He was speaking at a soiree organized by the Volta Regional Police Command for journalists in Ho on Friday. Mr. Ansong observed that while the media sought to expose wrongdoing, the Police had the duty to apprehend and prosecute criminals.

"More interesting is the fact that the Police and the journalist employ investigation as a major tool in the discharge of their duties," he noted.

Mr. Ansong, who assumed command of the Volta Region barely a month ago, held that the police institution cannot function efficiently without the conscious co-operation of the media whose major duty is the gathering and dissemination of information. He said the media had a crucial role in sensitising the public to help weed out criminals whose activities and modus operandi had become more sophisticated.

Mr. Ansong said the police in the region were working relentlessly to reduce the crime wave in the region. He assured Journalists that his office was open to them to cross check facts before going to press to "forestall the situation where some Journalists rush to publish information that may hinder investigation or demoralize Policemen or even damage the cordial relationship between us".

Issues raised during interactions were on roadblocks, exposure of informants and the role of the Police in checking smuggling in the country.

Mr. Mohammed Adams, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACOP) and outgoing Deputy Volta Regional Commander, explained that many informants divulge what they intended telling the police to others long before getting to the police and later turn round to blame the police for giving them up.

On smuggling, Mr. Adams said the Police had wide responsibilities to ensure the laws of the land were complied with and also pre-empt any threat to peace.

The Police, he said, could therefore request to verify if goods in transit were processed according to the laws and vehicles carrying those goods were not carrying other unspecified goods. He said road and snap checks were necessary to check criminal activity especially highway and armed robbery.