Accra, May 11, GNA - Mr Kofi Owusu, Director of Programmes at Joy FM, an Accra based radio station on Saturday called on the Police Service to sharpen the communication skills of its personnel to enhance effective police-media relations. He said when the Right to Information Bill was passed into law, pressure would be brought to bear on the police personnel, not only by the media but the general public to divulge information on security and other contingent issues.

Mr Owusu made the call when he addressed a workshop organized by "Course 40" graduates of the Ghana Police Service in Accra to discuss ways to enhance relations between journalists and the police to ensure security of the state. The workshop formed part of activities to mark the Course 40 graduates Annual General Meeting to discuss welfare issues of its members.

He said media outlets and the number of journalists in the country kept increasing, adding that, this was a wake up call for the Police Service to be up and doing since more information would be required from them by journalists to facilitate their work. He said the Service must discard the practice where only the superior officers were allowed to speak on issues, be it arrests, swoops and allow the officers who were direct activists in arrest of criminals to speak to the media. He said the police should be prepared to grant interviews to the media on issues they might demand clarification and be consistent with the facts to build confidence and trust between both institutions.

Mr Owusu cautioned against pronouncements which were likely to arouse passion and urged the police to be mindful of their choice of words. He told the police that the media was willing and could reach agreement with the service on how to report security and other vital issues, adding that, the Service should not consider the media as only interested in damaging its reputation. He called for frequent police media informal interactions to share ideas on current security developments and how to collaborate to forestall problem situations.

Reverend Superintendent Frank Twum-Baah, Chaplain on the Ghana Police Service and Member of the Course 40 graduates called for a course in security reporting for journalists to sharpen their skills. Reverend Twum-Baah urged the media not to leak vital information about the Service to ridicule it and called on authorities to boost morale of personnel.