The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr. David Asante-Apeatu, has been asked to put in place measures to wean the Ghana Police Service off undesirable political interference.
Very Rev. Fr. George Arthur, Director of Religious Affairs of the Ghana Police Service, who made the appeal at the induction service of the IGP in Accra, stressed the need to root out the practice whereby some Police Officers were promoted on partisan considerations.
He bemoaned favouritism which had become “a thorn in the flesh of state institutions including the Police Service,” saying that this situation was a setback to the country’s fledging democracy.
Fr. Arthur, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), urged the new IGP to ensure that enlistment into the Police Service was based on merit and not on protocol enlistment.
Touching on the high rate of lawlessness in the country, the Director of Religious Affairs entreated the IGP to lead the Service to wage a relentless war on the menace to promote peace and security in the country.
He reminded Mr. Asante-Apeatu that Ghanaians expected him to reduce carnage on our roads and weed out the perceived corruption among Police personnel to create a positive image for the Police Service.
Fr. Arthur also observed that the security ramifications in the country were dire, especially because of pockets of violence among ethnic groups and appealed to the IGP to take objective decisions and be firm in doing the right thing.
In a brief remark after his induction at the Ghana Police Church in Accra, Mr. Asante-Apeatu thanked President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for appointing him to the highest office in the Police Service and assured Ghanaians that he would ensure accountability and a high sense of integrity among Police personnel.
He added that the Police would discharge their duties in an impartial manner and ensure that no individual is seen to be above the law.
The IGP pledged to lead a transformational agenda to change the operations of the Service for good, and seek the welfare of police personnel.
The Induction Service was attended by Hon. Ambrose Dery, Minister of Interior; Ms. Gloria Akuffo, Minister of Justice and Attorney General and Major General Obed Boama Akwa, Chief of Defence Staff and top officials of the security agencies, government officials, traditional rulers, former IGPs and the Clergy.
