A security analyst with the Centre for Public Opinion and Awareness, Kamal Alhassan, has waded into conversations surrounding the recent occurrences in Ghana’s security systems, especially the Ghana Police Service.

A few weeks ago, there was an audio leak that had its contents seeking to ensure that the current Inspector-General of Police, George Dampare, is removed from office for various reasons stated by the instigators.

According to the audio the IGP had to be removed in order for the ruling party to be able to win the upcoming 2024 elections.

According to Kamal, the leakage of the tape opens the door to some level of mistrust among officials of the Ghana Police which may have negative implications on national security.

He alludes firstly to the fact that even though the contents of the audio are inappropriate and unfortunate, leaking it is unlawful and a breach of privacy.

“This is a pivotal moment for the GPS. It calls for dialogue, they need to sit back and evaluate things that are going on in the police service,” he opined.

However, on the merits of the content of the leaked tape, the analyst is of the belief that political interference must be reduced to the “minimum low” in order for the police to operate independently.

“This recording brings us to the point where we have to talk about and assess the way we do things in the police service – how do we recruit police officers, how do we promote police officers, how do we appoint the Inspector General of police and how do we ensure their independence,” he said.

Kamal said the police, in its current structure and stature is doing its best to ensure peace and safety in Ghana.

Even though he admits that in its current state, it is not up to date with current trends, he said he believed strongly that the country had what it took to build a more robust police service.

“When we look at their living conditions, whatever services we provide to the Ghana Police Service, it seems to be inadequate. And so, when the welfare of the police service is not taken care of, and resources are not provided, then policing becomes a tedious job.

“There’s no perfect police institution anywhere in the world. Police institutions like any other institution in the world, but the point is that the Ghana Police Service is handicapped in a lot of things currently including technological challenges, a lot of nepotism bribery, and corruption is going there. But we must empower them to do their work. They might not get it right all the time but we must be able to give them the necessary tools for the job,” Kamal noted.

On the issue of bribery and corruption, Kamal noted that it takes two to tango therefore citizens who pay bribes should be held as guilty as security officials who demand and collect those bribes.

He encouraged citizens to be able to stand their ground whenever they find themselves in situations involving the police.

The security analyst stated that the best thing to do in order to avoid any issue is “When the police stops you, you need to obey their commands because you want to avoid any bodily harm or injury. Make sure you get the identity of the police officer and file a police report if you have any issues. Sometimes it is not a good thing to challenge a police officer.”

SSD/OGB

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