IGP: Police will deal with election trouble-makers

The Inspector General of Police, James Oppong-Buanuh, has stated that the police administration will not spare any person or group of persons who will foment trouble in this year’s general election.

“I can assure the good people of Ghana that we shall perform our duties professionally without any bias towards the left, right or centre. We shall be impartial in the discharge of our duties. We shall discharge our constitutional mandate without fear or favour before, during and after the elections,” the IGP said.

The new police barracks built for Nkwatia police station

According to the IGP, political violence has not helped any country, neither has it solved any grievance or addressed any difference in opinion, urging Ghanaians not to engage in violence to jeopardize the peace enjoyed over the years.

Speaking at Kwahu Nkwatia over the weekend, during a ceremony to commission a 14-single room self-contained apartment constructed by KABAKA Foundation, the IGP further advised the youth “not to engage in violence to achieve anybody’s goal.”

He also advised politicians and personnel of the Ghana Police Service not to conduct themselves in a manner that mars the dignity of the country, saying the police administration would not shield any police personnel who misconducts himself in the election.

Upgrade

The IGP disclosed that the police administration has upgraded the Nkwatia police station to a district command, adding that plans are far advanced to upgrade same to a divisional status.

The IGP said the new division will be called Kwahu Scarp Division, and urged the chiefs and people of the area, including other philanthropists, to help in getting the needed infrastructure for the upgrade.

The IGP commended the philanthropist for his kind gesture, saying the gesture has come at the right time.

The project

The Director of KABAKA Foundation, Perpetual Lomokie, said though the Foundation focuses on the needs of mostly children and women, adding that they are still available in helping with other pressing societal needs.

She indicated that it is the reason why the Foundation decided to build the accommodation barracks for the police station.

Sgt Francis Gomado, the Acting Eastern Regional Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Police Service, said accommodation had been a big challenge for the police in the area, saying the gesture had come at a right time.

“This is going to give the police officers here some level of comfort so that any day, any time the community calls on them, they can be available,” he said.

He condemned the recent attacks on police installations by civilians, and urged people who perpetrate such acts to desist from that.

The chairman of KABAKA Foundation, Richard Owiredu Wadie, said he is a native of Nkwatia and therefore built the facility to give back to his community. He said peace and security are important to economic development, and therefore worth it to provide accommodation to police officers who are scattered in rented rooms in the community due to lack of barracks.

Mr Owiredu Wadie, who turned 40 this year, recently paid GHC12, 000 medical bills for 20 detained mothers at the Eastern Regional Hospital, and donated truck load of medical equipment, detergents, baby diapers, toiletries, among others, to the hospital.