Accra, May 19, GNA—Some University students have lauded the Police Administration for its relentless efforts to deepen relations with citizens.
The students have therefore urged the Police not to hold back on the initiative, but to make it a culture to restore its lost confidence in the eyes of the public.
The commendation follows a week-long Police engagement with students at the University of Ghana (UG), Legon; University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) and the Valley View University.
The Crime and Security Desk of the Ghana News Agency (GNA) observed that personnel from the Police Mounted Squadron together with some Police Divisional and District Commanders interacted with students to know their security concerns to help them map out tailor-made strategies to meet such needs.
In an interview with GNA, Ms Emmanuella Boadiwaa Antwi, a level 200 Geography and Archeology student, said the security concerns on campus included frequent theft cases and harassment of students, especially during the examination period.
She lauded the Police Administration, led by Dr George Akuffo Dampare, Inspector-General of Police (IGP), for show of leadership, proactivity, and concern for the security needs of Ghanaians.
“This current Police Administration is working well. It is a good initiative to come down to the people to solicit their views so that they can plan well to meet these needs. They should keep it up,” she added.
Mr Kelvin Abrokwa-Mante, a UG level 400 Geography and History student, said he was surprised when he saw so many Police personnel on campus and assumed that the President was probably attending an event on their campus.
“Out of curiosity, I drew close to one of the officers to enquire. The first words he uttered were, ‘Do not be afraid’, and welcomed us to interact with him. For me, this initiative is timely and reassuring because it means you can now have easy access to the Police,” he added.
He said Police presence would also deter criminals and make campuses uncomfortable for them to operate.
Mr Abrokwa-Mante appealed to the Police to reduce the bureaucracy involved when lodging complaints to encourage citizens to frequently file their cases.
Ms Pearl Kai Torgbor, a level 300 UG student reading Public Administration and Information Studies, said the “Dampare Initiative” was gradually changing the bad narrative regarding the Police.
However, her concern was that the halls did not have security personnel and appealed to the Police to liaise with the University security to recruit and train more personnel to be stationed at vantage points on campuses and the halls.
“It is good we have patrols on campus, but they cannot be everywhere at the same time. When you station security personnel at vantage points, the response time to crime reduces and makes fighting crime effective,” she said.
Mr Chief Stunna and Mr Bernard Koomson, both level 200 students of UPSA, said the security situation on their campus was commendable, however, they faced constant attacks from thieves whilst making their way from outside their campus to the halls of residence.
They therefore called for Police presence on the routes leading to their halls to deal with these concerns.
GNA later enquired from the Public Affairs Directorate about its observation of Police presence on these selected campuses.
The Police explained that the engagement formed part of efforts to heighten police visibility, gather intelligence, engage communities, and bring the Police to the doorstep of the public.
They said the initiative which began as a national capital activity, spearheaded by the IGP, later trickled down to the Regional Commands and now, the Divisional and District Commands.
Police said following the visit, they had begun operationalising some of the intelligence picked during the exercise and putting in strategies to improve security at the Universities.
They said the exercise would gradually be extended to other Universities across the country.
Source: Ghana News Agency
