The Ghana Police Service on Thursday, December 6 launched a special operation exercise designed to offer enhanced protection nationwide from activities of criminals, during and after the yuletide and into 2019.

The exercise tagged; “Operation Father Christmas,” was also a confidence building measure to assure the public of their safety and security and is expected to last for 45 days.

As part of activities preceding the launch of ‘Operation Father Christmas,’ there was a ‘show of force’ where some selected officers in a demonstration exercise paraded through some principal streets of Accra to make their presence palpable and affirm confidence to residents.

According to the Police Administration, the operation would involve robust confidence building and deterrent Police patrols on a 24 hour basis across the country. The patrols will include the mobile and foot patrol across various communities.

Mr David Asante-Apeatu, Inspector General of Police (IGP), in launching the operation, said the vision of the Police Service is to be a world-class organisation capable of delivering a planned, democratic, protective and peaceful service up to the standards of international best practice.

He said they had earlier launched the Police Transformation Agenda anchored on government 13 strategic objectives to modernise the Police Service.

Mr Asante-Apeatu said in line with the broader Transformational Agenda, there is an ongoing restructuring of the Motor Transport and Traffic Department (MTTD) to stop the carnage on the roads by ensuring professional conduct of officers.
He said the operation would bring the Police closer to the public and ensure that people celebrated the festive season free from fear of crime and unruly behaviours.

“To criminals out there who think Christmas and New Year seasons are conducive times to engage in your nefarious activities, re-think: think about your life, think about the name and image of your family and be real to yourself that the Police with support from sister security agencies will not relax in our effort to provide security for law abiding citizens,” Mr Asante-Apeatu said.

He commended the officers for their commitment and dedication to duty and assured them that a lot has been done to address their concerns, adding that, the fire power of the Service would be improved and more vehicles would be received to improve on mobility and enhance operations in 2019.

Mr Asante-Apeatu urged the public to support to the Police Service in its operations during the festive season to make it one of the most peaceful and memorable festive seasons in the nation’s history.