These police road checks

Gradually, road checks have intensified on our highways.

To say the least, these checks are annoyingly becoming avenues for open alms collection points as our Police Officers without shame openly ask for, “something for the boys”.

As a regular traveller on the Tema-Aflao Highway, I encounter these ‘beggers’ in uniform at several points along the Ada Junction (Kasseh) to Sogakofe stretch.

Beginning from Addokope, you encounter the first group.

This group usually (well attired in their neat MTTD uniforms) stops you and the first demand is to produce your driver's licence.

Once they have it, other questions follow.

Finally, “something for the boys?”

Next is the group just before Kasseh, usually two or three on motorbikes.

Next is another group at Tojeh, with the next usually being male and female officers also on motorbikes stopping you, and the next group just within viewing distance. 

The next group usually mounts crash barriers in a curve just before Kpotame.

After the usual formalities, they end with “something for the boys?”

Just before you exit Kpotame, another group, usually with defective speed monitors, stops you and charges you for overspeeding.

Finally, you settle matters and leave. Just at the Roman Catholic Church at Vume, another set of officers accost you and go through the ‘formalities’ with you, before you cross the lower Volta Bridge and meet the mother of all inland checkpoints in Ghana.

The Sogakofe Bridge has a large congregation of security agencies stationed permanently there. We have the military stationed sandbags, the police as usual, the customs officers, a battalion of immigration officers (as if on special assignment), NIB officials and finally District Assembly Revenue officers.

The question I usually ask myself is what at all do these Police Officers want from motorists? Mr IGP, what do your men want?

The nuisance and harassment is too much for travellers. Please rein in all these officials.

Mark Logo, Tema.