Vice-President inaugurates 3 police projects
The Vice-President, Mr Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, yesterday inaugurated three projects at the Ghana Police Service Headquarters to enhance the work of the police.
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The three projects include office facilities for the Public Affairs Department, the National Operations Department and the Police Fitness and Social Centre.
They were commenced in 2003 but were halted due to lack of funding.
However, through the support of some philanthropists and corporate institutions 60 per cent of the total cost of the three projects were covered while the Police Adminstration took care of the rest.
The Public Affairs Directorate is a one-storey facility that also has offices for the pension administration and protocol units of the service.
The two-storey National Operations Department has offices for all the action units of the police service including the Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT), Visibility, Rapid Deployment, Formed Police Unit and Serial Eco Unit.
The social centre, which would be used for social events, also has a gymnasium, a tennis court, and a swimming area.
38 abandoned projects
Before cutting separate tapes to inaugurate the projects, Vice-President Amissah Arthur said in the past four years, the government had allocated funds for the completion of 38 abandoned police projects.
“The intervention could not halt the increasing accommodation deficit,” he said, and added that the inadequacy of police accommodation had lingered on for a long time and seemed to elude solution.
Mr Amissah-Arthur said the numerical strength of the police service was still far below the optimum ratio for police-civil population of one to 450 persons, in accordance with United Nations standards.
Using the existing population figure, he said, the current ratio was one police to approximately 950 people.
Prototype Police Post
The Inspector General of Police, Mr Mohammed Ahmed Alhassan, said though the government was committed to the provision of infrastructure and logistics to enable the police to execute their mandated task, “the reality is that the competing demands on state resources have made this difficult to achieve”.
He said the developments at the headquarters had spurred the regional, divisional and district commands on to embark on similar projects to give a facelift to their respective infrastructure.
“We are therefore witnessing a positive drive which seeks to bring back the good old days of cleanliness in and around police premises.”
He said the police administration in a quest to bring policing closer to the public had adopted a model prototype police post as a standard community police post.
“Even though the police post may not provide the full complement of a police station, it will enhance police presence in communities and help control crime.”
He stated that the prototype police post model was affordable as it would cost GH¢30,000 to construct within two months and required no painting.
He therefore appealed to all metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives, Members of Parliament and benevolent institutions to support the police administration with the construction of such prototype model police posts in their communities.
The Deputy Minister for the Interior, Mr James Agalga, commended the police administration for spearheading initiatives that would facilitate the achievement of the mandate of the police.
He described the construction of the three projects as another milestone that would help the police in the discharge of their duty.
Writer’s email: emelia.ennin@graphic.com
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