The opposition National Democratic Congress has demanded the wearing of identification cards by the Police personnel come the December elections.
According to the party, this is to safeguard the integrity of the Ghana Police Service and other security agencies who will be providing security on Election Day.
In a statement signed by the party’s Director of Operations Lt. Col. (Rtd) Larry Gbevlo-Lartey, it said, this will as well ensure transparency and bolster confidence in the electoral process.
“The attention of the NDC has been drawn to a circular issued by the Inspector General of Police to the effect that only traditional Police uniforms would be worn on Election 2020 duties and related operations. According to the circular, traditional uniforms for this purpose will be “blue-black/black and camouflage uniforms”.
“The NDC believes that these measures derive from the lessons learnt from the embarrassment the Ghana Police Service suffered during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election disgrace. We therefore commend the IGP and his staff on plans drawn by the National Election Security Task Force to sanitize the security situation, maintain law and order on December 7 election day and ensure peace. However, the NDC is of the view that the announcement on the authorized uniform to be worn on D-Day will be inadequate without ensuring that all Police personnel and others drawn from other security agencies are properly identified with their names clearly displayed on their uniforms.
“It is our contention that the wearing of name tag identification is the surest way to safeguard the integrity and image of the Ghana Police Service and other security agencies that will be deployed for Election Day security activities”.
Additionally, he said, the normal dressing requirement for all service personnel should be strictly enforced to assuage fears that some Police uniforms being sewn “will find its way into the hands of vigilantes/hoodlums recruited by the ruling Party/government to intimidate and suppress voters in opposition strongholds”.
“Indeed, the NDC takes seriously information making the rounds that persons other than genuine Police officers, some of whom were described as National Security operatives who committed acts of brigandage during the Ayawaso West Wogon bi-election last year, will be clothed in such Police uniforms to avoid detection”.
Meanwhile, The Ahafo Regional Police Command has identified 80 political hotspot communities in the region and assured that the police will beef up personnel to maintain law and order for a peaceful general election.
The Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Isaac Kwami Loh, the Ahafo Regional Police Public Relations Officer disclosing this, emphasized his outfit’s preparedness to deal with troublemakers in these hotspot communities to facilitate violent-free elections.
He further urged residents in identified hotspot areas to detect and clamp down on people with deviant behaviour who have the potential to disturb the peace and mar the beauty of the December 7, polls.
Speaking at a dialogue session on political vigilantism organised by the National Peace Council (NPC), ASP Loh revealed that, the police would not tolerate any violent behaviour at the various polling stations in the communities and cautioned particularly, both supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) to comport themselves during the duration of the electoral processes.
The dialogue was attended by 35 youth groups drawn from some of the hotspot communities including Sankore, Kukuom, Nkasiem, Acherensua, Hwidiem, Kwapong and Dadiesoba in the region.
