Police says govt has not imported arms for them

Mr Joseph Boakye-Appiah, Commissioner of Police with oversight responsibilities for Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions has made it categorically clear that the government has not imported any arms and ammunition for the police to be used to terrorise people during the December polls.

Neither was it true that the government was training a special police corp to bully the opposition during the elections, he said.

Responding to a question on these allegations posed by a supporter of the NDC when he met the various political parties in the Adansi East district on Wednesday, Mr Boakye-Appiah explained that there is a law, which governs the importation of arms and ammunition into the country.

He said it is only the security agencies, which by the nature of their work use arms and ammunition to defend the country that can ask government to import arms and ammunition when the need arises.

The commissioner of police said, there is a procedure, which has to be followed in the importation of arms and ammunition, and unless this was done, nobody, not even the government can import arms into the country.

Therefore he dispelled the notion that government has imported arms and ammunition on the black market.

Mr Boakye-Appiah said, since the police service is not a political institution, no political party can influence its administration.

He explained that what the government had done was to increase the intake into police training institutions so as to strengthen the security of the country.

Mr Boakye-Appiah reiterated the advice to all police personnel to stay clear of politics and also entreated the political parties to avoid acts and utterances that had the tendency for violence and rather, campaign peacefully.

Mr Ofosu Mensah Gyeabuor, Ashanti Regional Police Commander, appealed to the political parties to exercise restraint for the Electoral Commission to use its constitutional mandate to resolve any electoral problems.

Mr Dominic Yeboah, the Adansi East District Chief Executive entreated the leaders of the political parties to educate their supporters on the importance of peace to national development. 31 May 04