Western Regional Senior Police Officers conference opens
Mr Ebenezer Teye Addo, Western Regional Minister, on Thursday expressed concern about the multiple sale of lands and encroachment on government lands as this did not augur well for development.
Mr Addo said this when he opened the first Western Regional Senior Police Officers conference at Takoradi.
Mr Addo said a number of such cases were pending before the law courts and that the situation was rendering Government’s vision of making the private sector the engine of economic growth very difficult.
He said investors, who were lured into buying such lands, ended up litigating in the courts instead of focusing on their investment agenda adding; “this wanes investor confidence in the regional economy”.
Mr Addo appealed to Nananom and landowners to desist from such practices in order to restore hope in the land administration system of the region.
He said the blatant pollution of the River Pra and the destruction of its ecology through illegal mining was a serious security threat which was hampering the smooth operation of the Ghana Water Company at Daboase resulting in acute water shortage in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis.
Mr Addo said the illegal mining activity in the region was a major concern to the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) and the nation as a whole.
He urged the Police to work in concert with other security agencies to assess the dangers posed by illegal mining and take a firm stand against those involved who continued to operate with impunity and with little or no regard to human life.
Mr Addo assured the Police and other security agencies of Government and REGSEC’s support in fighting the illegal mining (galamsey) canker.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Kofi Boakye, Regional Police Commander, said the Police Administration had introduced the Police Visibility and Accessibility Concept to improve quality service delivery, boost public confidence and build positive police image.
He said the Regional Police Command had embraced the concept and currently implementing it in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis.
DCOP Boakye said the essence of the concept was to bring policing to the doorsteps of communities to reduce the fear of crime and make committing crime very difficult.
He said the Regional Police Patrol Unit had been established and operated 24 hours with personnel being deployed on highways to give full assurance to motorists, commuters and settlers along the road of their safety.
DCOP Boakye said: “This is another proactive strategy to prevent crime and institutionalize the patrol system which is the bedrock of our police activities”.
He said organizational and national interests should always by the priority of police personnel and that despite the efforts being made by the Police Administration to redeem the image of the service, some few personnel still continued to tarnish its image by their actions and inactions.
DCOP Boakye asked senior police officers to play their supervisory role effectively and strive to maintain high standards of discipline and professionalism.
Source: GNA