C/regional Police Command Holds ‘wassa’

The central regional police command on Friday held its annual West Africa Security Services Association “WASSA” celebration at the regional police headquarters, Pedu.

The occasion was also used to review the performance of the police in the year 2014 as against 2013 and also to plan for the way forward.

In a speech read on his behalf by his deputy, the Regional Police Commander, DCOP Mr. Ransford Moses Ninson disclosed that the region has been relatively peaceful and this he attributed to the collaborative effort of the police and other stakeholders.

Mr. Ninson therefore appealed to all to continue to co-operate with the police at all times in the fight against crime in the region and beyond.

VITAL STATISTICS
Reviewing the performance of the police in the region in the year 2014 against the previous year, DCOP Ninson stated that, 18,679 criminal cases were recorded in the year 2014 as against 18,676 cases in the previous year showing an increase of 3 cases.

Defilement cases increased from 191 to 273. Rape cases also rose from 38 to 56 during the year under review.

However, murder cases in the region reduced to 39 as against 49 cases recorded in 2013 whiles robbery cases saw a considerable reduction from 156 to 79.

Possessing of Narcotic Drugs in the region witnessed a reduction of 71 cases in 2014 as against 91 cases recorded in 2013.

Mr. Ninson said the security in the region will continue to collaborate with all stakeholders to fight against crime and therefore called on society to give their total support to the police in this direction for the common good of the people of the Central Region and all those who visit the region and Ghana as a whole.

ROAD ACCIDENTS
Road accident has taken the lives of many personalities as well as ordinary citizens in the central region.

Many are those who have suffered permanent disabilities. Several others have loss valuable properties and livelihood as a result of road accidents.

Touching on this matter which is of grave concern to the citizens of region, Commander Ninson had this to say “the carnage on our roads is another source of great worry to all and as such the campaign on road safety has to be intensified by all the relevant stakeholders”.

He revealed that, in 2014 the region recorded a total of 1,037 cases as against 1,162 in 2013. Fatal clashes reduced from 177 in 2013 to 134 whiles the number of persons injured also reduced from 1,496 in 2013 to 1,191 in 2014. Persons who were killed saw a reduction from 287 in 2013 to 206 in 2014.

According to the regional commander, the above statistics depict a tremendous decrease in road traffic crashes, fatalities and injuries.

Mr. Ninson attributed the downward trend largely to the intensive Road Safety Campaign and Enforcement the police under took in collaboration with Road Safety Commission, Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), Red Cross and other stakeholders.

GALAMSEY OPERATIONS.
DCOP Moses Ninson noted that activities of illegal mining known in local parlance as Galamsey which gained grounds in the region some time ago in notable areas such as Ayanfuri, Dunkwa-On-Offin, Twifu Praso and Assin Fosu had been drastically brought under control.

He added that the security agencies will continue to monitor the situation and take action when the need arises.

Central Regional Minister, Mr. Aquinas Tawiah Quansah, congratulated men and officers for maintaining peace and stability in the region.

He observed that criminals, these days, have developed new tricks of carrying out crimes in society which requires collaborative effort and massive cooperation to fight.

He therefore called on the people of the central region to see the police as their friends and feel free to volunteer credible information to them to enable the men in uniform fight against criminals in the region.

18 personnel in the Junior Officer category and six civilian employees were awarded with certificates of recognition for their hard work.

Pupil from cape coast school for the Deaf performed cultural dance and choreography to entertain the audience. Their beautiful and intelligent display proved that indeed disability is not inability.