Suhum (E/R), July 25, GNA - Participants at a forum organised by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) at Suhum on Wednesday have accused the Police and the Environment Health Officers of extorting money from the people.

The participants said some Police personnel at Suhum deliberately placed innocent people in the cells and asked their relatives to pay amounts ranging from 200,000 to 400,000 cedis before granting them bail. They alleged that those who could not pay the amount were sent to court and the presiding magistrate is asked not to grant them bail because the Police had not completed their investigations. The participants said as a result of the practice the Suhum Police Station was always crowded.

They said some of the Police officers also "turn themselves into debt collectors and chase debtors to their houses at dawn, arrest and place them in the cells".

The participants also accused the Environmental Health Inspectors of extorting money from environmental offenders.

A contributor said when environmental offenders were caught, instead of sending them to the court, they were asked to see the inspectors in their offices and after extorting money from them they were set free.

The participants said some nurses of the Suhum Government Hospital of were rude to patients and extorted money from them before allowing them to see a Doctor.

They said drugs at the hospital were expensive, alleging that drugs sold at private drug stores at 45,000 cedis were sold at the hospital at 135,000 cedis.

The District Director of the NCCE, Mr Patrick Asiedu, expressed the Commission's appreciation for their participants in expressing their views at the forum.

''It is the duty of the Commission to ensure that every citizen in the country is treated equally under the Constitution.''

He said it was rather unfortunate that some people in authority abused provisions of the Constitution deliberately and expressed the hope that such people would put an end to the behaviour.