Navrongo Immigration intensifies border surveillance ahead of Christmas festivities

The Navrongo Municipal Command of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) has announced plans to intensify border surveillance and joint security patrols ahead of the Christmas festivities to prevent criminal activities and safeguard residents.

The Municipal Immigration Commander, Deputy Superintendent Jerry Attipoe, said the Christmas season often attracts increased human movement, making it a period that could be exploited by criminal elements to create security challenges.

He disclosed that the command would collaborate with other security agencies to conduct joint patrols, man checkpoints and intensify surveillance along the borders and at other strategic locations.

According to him, the measures are intended to strengthen the monitoring of people entering and leaving the country and ensure that proper profiling is conducted.

Speaking to Edmond Kwaching Agwaazeh in an exclusive interview on Wednesday, Attipoe stressed that national security was a collective responsibility. He called on residents, particularly those in border communities, to promptly report suspicious persons entering the country without proper immigration profiling to the nearest immigration office.

He also urged travellers to use only approved entry points to enable immigration officers to properly screen and document their movements.

He further expressed concern about security developments in neighbouring countries, including Burkina Faso, Togo and Côte d’Ivoire, and urged residents to remain vigilant to prevent potential security threats from spilling into Ghana.

On the challenge of inadequate personnel, the Municipal Commander said the command was strategically positioning its available officers at key road intersections and other important locations to maximise surveillance and patrol coverage.

He, however, expressed optimism that additional personnel would be deployed to strengthen security operations in the area following the government’s ongoing recruitment exercise into the service.