Police begins horse patrol operations
The Police Administration has introduced the use of horses for patrol operations within Tema and Accra and their surrounding communities.
The officers on horseback, referred to as troopers, are to augment other police patrol duties such as community foot patrol, motor bike patrol, visibility patrol, which mostly uses vehicles, and the recently deployed motorcycle traffic management and mobility teams.
Their activities according to the Police Administration forms part of its resolve to fight crime and win the fight against crime.
Public confidence
A short ceremony was held to launch the horse patrol operations today, Thursday, August 12, 2021, at the National Joint Operations Headquarters in Accra saw some personnel trained for the special operation displaying their skill.
It is expected that the horse riding police personnel whose activities are part of the Ghana Police Service’s method of crime prevention and detection, would provide security in a friendly and interactive manner.
Speaking on behalf of the Acting Inspector-General of Police, the Director–General National Patrols Department (NPD), Commissioner of Police (COP), Mr Yaagy Akuribah, advised the troopers detailed for such duties to demonstrate professionalism in all aspects of their work for excellent services.
He urged the troopers to assist in building the trust of the public in the police service and also increase public confidence within the communities they operate since they would be one of the first point of call when it comes to security.
The Director-General in charge of Information Communication Technology (ICT), Commissioner of Police (COP), Mr Edward Tabiri assured the officers of communication logistical support during their duty tours in order to communicate efficiently for assistance.
Mounted squadron
The Ghana Police Service already has a mounted police squadron unit with police who patrol on horseback.
However, the day-to-day function of the mounted squadron has typically been ceremonial although they are occasionally deployed for crowd control.