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24.03.2015 Editorial

Parlous Precedence!

By Daily Guide
Parlous Precedence!
24.03.2015 LISTEN

For the umpteenth time we are belabouring the point that it is dangerous to politicise the law enforcement system in the country. We would maintain our course unwaveringly inasmuch as devious and selfish persons continue to draw the Ghana Police Service into the axis of partisan politics where it does not belong.

The dividends to be derived from politicising what is an integral part of the larger justice delivery system can only be self-serving and a threat to the integrity of what used to be the pride of the African continent.

In the past few weeks we have observed this dangerous subterfuge by some elements of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ashanti Region – a trend which if not stopped now, can result in ominous repercussions.

The law enforcement agency is a critical appendage of the justice delivery system and should therefore be rendered all the necessary protection it deserves from the shenanigans of mischievous politicians. This crop of Ghanaians will stop at nothing to promote its myopic interests, even if this has negative implications on the nation.

In Kumasi the ruling party has demanded that the Regional Police Commander and his deputy be transferred from the region.

Ours is not a campaign for the person of Kofi Boakye but an effort towards shielding the police as a critical law enforcement agency and internal security department against the unwholesome politics of a polarised country.

This is an unacceptable precedence which should not be allowed by all means. It is worrying and regrettable that those championing the aberration have been given audience at the Flagstaff House – something we think should not have happened at all.

The Police Service is run by the Inspector General of Police, supported by the Police Council – the political overseer of its operations in-charge of policies and promotions among other functions as enshrined in the Constitution.

Party activists, no matter which political grouping they belong, do not have any business deciding which commander goes where and the like.

The call for the removal of the regional commander and his deputy has prompted questions about the integrity of their demand. Of what value would such an action on the part of the president be to quality of policing? Is it part of the 'one million votes' agenda of the NDC in the Ashanti Region?

We have heard from some quarters that this is a subterfuge to prompt intervention from the NPP so the regional commander can be dubbed an NPP man and transferred from the region. How pedantic and puerile!

Whatever it is that they seek to achieve, ours is a principled position that nobody outside the Police Service should draw this critical institution into partisan politics.

If we are not careful, we would politicise the Police Service and jeopardise not only the career of persons who have served this institution for the better parts of their lives, but put the country on a parlous path that could decimate the institutions which make it a state. This is our worry and story.

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