Unprofessional Conduct Of Some Police Personnel 

NEWS COMMENTARY ON THE UNPROFESSIONAL CONDUCT OF SOME POLICE OFFICERS IN THE COURSE OF DUTY  

The Police Service has a responsibility to ensure the maintenance of security and protection of all citizens in the country. While many policemen have been commended over the years for the commitment towards the performance of their duties, others have not been able to perform their duties creditably in line with law and also respect for human rights as well as peaceful co-existence between the police as an institution and other sections of society. The unfortunate killing of seven people in the Ashanti Region suspected to be armed robbers has raised a number of questions regarding the professional conduct of the Police in certain respects. It is good that the Inspector General of Police and other security officers together with government have planned to institute an independent body to investigate the matter to find out what actually went wrong in other to prevent a recurrence. While this is ongoing, those playing politics with the issue with the aim of scoring political points should put a stop to this because it will not help to advance the cause of the nation in any way. 

What we need to do in this matter is to learn lessons so that the Police will not panic or be involved in knee-jerk reactions to certain difficult situations whenever they come in touch with them. The matter has been worsened by a video on social media showing how a policeman at a savings and loan company brutally assaulted a defenceless woman carrying a baby. The behaviour of this policeman has received widespread condemnation. The President of the Republic who was on a tour in the three regions up north has expressed concern about this unfortunate development, pledging his full support to the Inspector General of Police on the steps taken so far to investigate the issue. Many Ghanaians have expressed shock at the incidence and called on authorities to ensure that the policeman be made to face the law. The incident involving another policeman who mistakenly shot and killed a driver of a bullion van also raises concern on the competence of some officers charged with maintaining law and order especially in difficult circumstances where skills such as tact, diplomacy and discernment are greatly needed. A number of issues come to mind here. 

Our policemen ought to be given further training on the clamping-down of suspected armed robbers, avoiding shoot-to-kill practice but rather resorting to shoot to maim. Training on tact and diplomacy is also necessary in this case since such training programmes, it is hoped, will go a long way to improve on the professional competence of the police. It is not to say that the police are totally incompetent when it comes to fighting crime or addressing matters that affect human rights. Rather, they have proved their competence beyond reasonable doubt. In certain cases, however, we need to correct some mistakes to ensure that the police service is made to become super competent to deal with all matters. While we must not do things to demoralise the police, we need at the same time to be strict on them so as to get the best out of their performance. This is what the nation needs for the promotion of peace and security as well as police integrity in the eyes of the general public.  

BY: DR. KOFI AMPONSAH-BEDIAKO, DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS, GHANA STANDARDS AUTHORITY.
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