Francis Poku Storms CEPS

The Minister for National Security, Mr. Francis Poku, has cautioned staff of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) that his outfit would not spare anyone caught cheating the government.

Mr. Poku met CEPS officials in a hurriedly-arranged meeting after he stormed the Tema Collection Point yesterday to address issues of alleged rampant extortions in the nation's 'harbour city'.

The minister, whose visit virtually took many officers by surprise, said he appreciated the numerous contributions the service had made to the national economy, but stressed that the attitude of a few bad nuts had dented the reputation of all.

He hinted that CEPS plays a vital role in economic and national security matters, and that but for the high revenue generated at the country's entry points, government would have found it difficult to pay the retirement packages of over 2,000 ex-servicemen who had gone on retirement.

Contributing, the Commissioner for CEPS, Mr. Emmanuel Doku, urged officers to be mindful of the ethics of the profession. He also reminded them that it is criminal to collect or give bribes, stressing that anyone who goes against the law would not be spared.

Mr. Doku noted that the public image of the service had been badly dented by recent arrests of officers allegedly involved in corrupt practices.

He, however, said what had happened should not demoralize the staff but urge them to promote higher standards in the discharge of their duties.

He also insisted on discipline, punctuality, maintenance of dress code and good relations with customers.

During a public forum soon after the visit, many of the staff suggested that it would be better for any reports or allegations to be handled internally, instead of handcuffing suspects and publicly humiliating them.

It would be recalled that barely a fortnight ago, four CEPS officers were arrested for allegedly trying to extort monies from an importer. This was followed two days later by the arrest of another officer in connection with a similar crime.

The four officers have since been put before court and are currently on bail.

Before the visit, DAILY GUIDE had information that staff at the Tema Collection Point were planning to go on a sit-down strike to protest against what they view as the arrest and humiliation of their colleagues.

To this end, the Public Relations Officer of Tema CEPS Collection Point, Ms. Esther Sackey, said she was optimistic that the meeting with the National Security Minister would boost their morale.

She denied the allegation that they were planning to go on strike, saying the meeting with the minister and the commissioner was an interaction they normally had with their superiors from time to time; a situation she referred to as 'an internal durbar'.

Some of the agents interviewed later told the paper that prior to the minister's visit, CEPS staff had refused to attend to them.

From Simmons Yussif Kewura, Tema