Interior Minister Tasks Security Officers

THE MINISTER for the Interior, W. K Aboah, has commended the security agencies in the Ashanti Region, with a call on them to enforce the law effectively and strategically map out plans to overcome conflict and disorder in the December polls.

The minster charged the security officers in the region to ensure that partisan political activities did not degenerate into violence and lawlessness.

'The battle is not yet over, there is still much to be done. The presidential and parliamentary elections will come off in December this year. This will be preceded by political campaigns by members of political parties throughout the country,' he reminded them.

At a durbar held in his honour during a visit to Kumasi recently, the minister said that in the security officers' quest to bring peace to the region, they should continue to consider crime reduction as the primary purpose of policing.

He reiterated the Mills- Mahama government's readiness and commitment to ensure a free, fair and transparent election to deepen the country's democratic credentials.

'As peace officers who have to enforce the law of the land, you are reminded that the winds of violence may blow from all directions, and it is only with a high degree of professionalism that you can combat the signs of impending strife and chaos,' he stressed.

The minister advised them to eschew indiscipline so that they would not be found wanting in executing their duties professionally.

He said discipline was an indispensable ingredient in the Security Service, recounting that some of the officers had lost sight of this requirement and continued to involve themselves in anti-social acts that belittled the hard won reputation of the Services.

According to Mr. Aboah, anonymous letters and rumour mongering were becoming abscess in all the Security Services, disclosing that his outfit had received a number of such letters from service personnel, with copies going to the Office of the President recently.

'In as much as I will not discourage anybody from seeking redress for your grievances from higher authority, it must be done in conformity with the laid down procedures', he indicated.

He appealed to the press to take a critical look at such letters they received before putting them into the public domain, stressing that such publications destroyed the relationship between the public and members of the Security Services.

Mr. Aboah expressed worry that political meanings had been read into postings of officers, stating emphatically that postings were unavoidable in the Security Services, for several reasons.

In his view, transfer ensured rational deployment of personnel and was part of any organisation's strategic human development since prolonged stay at one station was detrimental to any worker's development and the organization.

He warned that any service personnel who operated behind a political party and refused to go on transfer did so at their own peril.

He assured them of government's determination to improve the logistical situation in all the services, promising that vehicles of all types, accommodation, communication equipment, protective clothing and other security gadgets would be provided.

Mr. Aboah entreated them to continue to be loyal and committed to maintaining and sustaining peace in the country.

In his welcome address, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Augustine Gyening, expressed his outmost appreciation to the minister for taking time of his busy schedule to pay them a visit.

He expressed the hope that the minister's visit would offer him the opportunity to assess the general security situation of the region and the logistical constraints facing all the security agencies under his watch.

The Regional Commander disclosed that the general crime situation in the region was on the low side.

He however said the havoc caused by cattle owned by foreign herdsmen had been on the ascendency, resulting in widespread resentment and agitations by the affected communities.

To prevent rampant highway robberies in the region, he said, his Command would continue manning all the six outlets from Kumasi to Accra, Ejura, Techiman, Sunyani, Bibiani and Obuasi routes.

He however called on the minister to assist the region with additional patrol vehicles to enable them to effectively patrol the highways.

 FROM James Quansah, Kumasi