BNI foils Community Police street protest in Tamale

The Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) and the Tamale Police Commander have blocked and dispersed dozens of Community Police Personnel under the Youth Employment Agency from staging a street protest Monday to demand payment of their salary arrears.

The personnel numbering over 100 were massing up at the regional Police headquarters to pour onto the street when the Metro Police Commander came from his office and ordered the angry officers to disperse, saying the gathering at the security command was illegal.

The aggrieved personnel refused to disperse until the BNI boss arrived at the scene to hold a meeting with them at the office of the Police Commander.

They later moved to the Jubilee Park where they addressed the media. According to them, the two security heads told them they could not hold a street protest without writing to the Police. They claimed the BNI boss advised them to write a formal notice to the Police before they could embark on street protest.

One officer who spoke to Starr News and gave his name as Abdulai Mohammed Mubarak (networking) said he was recruited on the 4th of May and has since then received only a month salary.

He said the government has failed them and accused the Regional Director of the Youth Employment Agency, Sule Salifu, of diverting their allowances and threatening them with dismissals.

“You told us lies and recruited us just to pretend you are offering jobs. I am 4th batch working but have been paid only once. Don’t you receive your salaries in your offices? Where is our share? So, we won’t accept more lies. They have threatened to sack if we come out to complain, but try to pay us our allowances before sacking us,” he cried out.

“But you should also know that sacking us from this job means we are leaving the NPP. How come some of them now own cars? Isn’t because the NPP is in power,” the angry officer added.

Others said they had not been paid for eight months and when they tried to demand accountability, regional authorities threatened to fire and render them jobless.

“We met Sule Salifu and they asked for our E- Zwich cards but nothing came out of it. Just two weeks ago he called again and changed his explanation. He even told us to stop questioning his orders.

“How can you tell us not to have something to say when you talk? We hear him saying he would sack and we will feed on grass. We won’t eat grass but we are waiting for 2020. Nana Addo won’t be the only flagbearer in 2020. 2020 we go show Nana Addo,” one female officer also fumed.

The Regional Director Sule Salifu did not respond to requests for comments.