POLICE WILL ENSURE PEACEFUL ELECTIONS (Centre Spread)

10/07/08

Story: Mary Mensah

THE Police Administration has put in place national and regional task forces to minimise any breaches of the law before, during and after this year's general election.
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Patrick K. Acheampong, who made this known, therefore expressed strong optimism that the December 7 Presidential and Parliamentary elections would be conducted in a peaceful atmosphere.
Mr Acheampong was speaking in an encounter with the Editorial Board of the Daily Graphic in Accra on Tuesday.
Mr Acheampong said preparatory work towards the peaceful conduct of the elections was on course and called for a collective effort on the part of all stakeholders to achieve this objective.
He said the Police Administration had also beefed up security in conflict areas through the provision of equipment and vehicles to forestall any possible disturbances during the electioneering.
"We do not think we would have much problems in the conflict areas as far as campaigns and the elections are concerned," he said in answer to a probing question concerning election in trouble spots in the country.
He, however, cautioned politicians not to fuel ethnic sentiments during the campaign period, since such sentiments had the potential to foment trouble.
The IGP also urged them not to politicise security matters, since they were matters for the security agencies to address.
Mr Acheampong said there had been instances where some political party activists had gone to the extent of reading politics into some criminal activities, pointing out that this did not augur well for the country's democratic dispensation.
He called for mutual co-operation between the security agencies and the civilian population to ensure peaceful, free and fair elections.
Earlier at a meeting with the management of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, the Managing Director, Mr Ibrahim Awal, assured the IGP of the company’s resolve to partner the police in their fight against crime and other social vices, reports Mary Mensah.
Mr Awal stressed that both institutions had a responsibility to maintain peace, order and unity in the country at all times and it was important that the two collaborated.
He said the GCGL would support the police by providing free space for adverts and tit bits to educate the public about trends of crime and what to do to avoid falling victim.
Mr Awal indicated that the products of the company would only thrive in a peaceful atmosphere, stating that currently the company published seven newspapers with a wide readership.
The managing director said the flagship newspaper of the company, the Daily Graphic, had maintained its position as the leading newspaper in the country because it always strove to be objective and fair in its reportage in order to maintain standards.
The General Manager for Newspapers, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafoh, said the Daily Graphic had always supported the police by publishing details of wanted persons to assist the police to track them down.
Mr Ayeboafoh indicated that both institutions were interested in the stability of the nation and urged the police administration to be very open with the public it served, so that the integrity of its personnel would be better appreciated by the people.
For his part, the IGP expressed his appreciation to the management of GCGL for its support and said the police had put in place stringent measures to combat the recent spate of armed robberies and other crimes in the country.
He stressed, however, that the police could not fight crime without the support and collaboration from the public and corporate organisations like the GCGL.