POLICE READY FOR RUN OFF (Centre Spread)

19/12/2008
Story: Mary Mensah & Francis Kyei
The Police Administration says it has put in place all it takes to achieve a peaceful presidential run-off on December 28, 2008 and a smooth transfer of power on January 7, 2009.
It said it would continue to ensure that Ghana went through an incident-free transition as far as internal security and the services of the police were concerned.
The Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Frank Adu-Poku, gave the assurances yesterday at the passing out parade of the fourth batch of 116 recruits who have successfully completed their basic training at the National Police Training School in Accra.
He attributed the success of the elections on December 7, 2008 to the co-operation and co-ordination of the Police Service and its sister security agencies and noted that the professional display by the police and allied security agencies was duly acknowledged and lauded not only in Ghana but also internationally and hoped that the same mechanism of professionalism would be adopted to ensure peace during the run-off and the period of transition.
DCOP Adu-Poku cautioned the recruits against the indiscriminate and unjustifiable use of firearms, brutalisation of innocent people and suspects, bribery and corruption, indiscipline, among others.
The director-general urged the recruits to bear in mind that they were under an 18-month probation and that any breach of discipline on the part of any of them would attract appropriate disciplinary action that could end his or her career prematurely, adding, “Your confirmation after the probation period will depend on your loyalty, good conduct and commitment to duty.”
He said the three core pillars of policing were the exhibition of professionalism, discipline and correct usage of discretion, noting that as members of the profession they were expected to follow the regulations in the service instructions and be conversant with the provisions of the Police Service Act and other statutes governing the service.
DCOP Adu-Poku stated that enforcing the law in society today was not an easy task, adding, however, that as professionals who were well trained, their knowledge and skills in handling issues of human rights and modern law enforcement techniques must reflect in their performance as police officers.
The training of the 116 recruits, who are all males, took six months, during which they were schooled in both police and liberal subjects, which included Practical Police Duties, Criminal Law, Criminal Investigations, Law of Evidence, Acts and Decrees, Fundamental Human Rights and Social Psychology.
The Overall Best Recruit award went to General Recruit Joshua Kwofie.