Police Service to get more funding

President Kufuor has given the assurance that the government will expand its budgetary allocation to the Ghana Police Service to enable it to meet its specialist training needs.

He said given the rapidly changing environment, both within and outside the country, continuing training in the service was imperative.

The President, who was speaking at the passing-out ceremony of 102 officer cadets at the National Police Training School in Accra on Friday, said in the light of globalisation, the government was encouraging activities which aimed at enhancing sub-regional integration.

He announced that preparations were underway for a police joint operation in one of the ECOWAS member countries.

President Kufuor said globalisation was inevitable and Ghana had to prepare its citizens appropriately not only to cope with it but more importantly to harness it for national development.

He said for the Police Service, effects of globalisation were already manifesting in various ways, including increasing transnational crime, adding that the service could not afford but to come up with new strategies to confront this menace in the country and beyond.

President Kufuor said as the Chairman of the African Union, he was advocating the strengthening of all security forces on the continent to prevent the recurrence' of war and conflict with their negative effects on the socio-economic development of nations.

He said the country was taking advantage of global initiatives such as the International Mutual Police Cooperation, which many countries had embraced as one of the effective ways of fighting transnational crime.

President Kufuor said the Police Service was already revising and upgrading both the content and the quality of training programmes, to conform with modern international police training standards.

"The syllabuses, I learn, have been revised to place more emphasis on subjects which prepare cadets adequately for policing in open and democratic societies," he added.

He said as graduating cadet officers, they were aware that security challenges facing the world were enormous such that the co-operation of society was needed.

"Indeed, the general security of our nation is the collective responsibility of all of us," President Kufuor emphasised.

"In my speech during the state of the nation address earlier this year, I reiterated government's commitment to increasing the strength of the Police Service. Measures which were started five years ago to achieve this goal are going on vigorously, to enhance police presence in communities all over the country," he stated.

The President said at the same time, the government was steadily improving the infrastructural and logistical support of the service, and added that new operational uniforms had been procured for the entire service.

Further, he said, additional vehicles and other equipment would be available for operational duty, starting from July this year.

He indicated that a major challenge had been the provision of improved accommodation for service personnel and the government was engaged in negotiations with both local and foreign companies to provide massive residential and office accommodation for the service.

Meanwhile, the Police Council is considering a Five-Year Strategic Document which will provide for far-reaching reforms, including the new Disciplinary Code, the Police Service Administration Regulations and Conditions of Service.

This, he said, should brighten the career prospects of the entire staff of the Service.

The Overall Best Cadet went to Cadet Officer Alfred Kudah.