A security analyst, Richard Kumador has criticized the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akufo Dampare on the decision to recruit qualified relatives into the service to compensate for the loss of an officer who dies in the line of duty.
According to him, the initiative is wrong and amounts to engaging in family affairs with the police administration adding that the move is also against the international policing practice.
“I think it’s a wrong strategy and it’s a very dangerous precedent. The difficulty there is that he is turning the police into a family affair. Kofi Boagye has his son who came up as the best cadet in the recent passing out. Now, what I am saying is that what happens internationally is that when people die in the course of their duty, you compensate the family.
“No, you are setting a precedent that when people start killing people their family in the police knowing that Dampare said he will replace them when their family die. I think he is wrong and will need to encourage people to leave a good legacy so that when their family members are joining the law enforcement agencies, particularly the police, it is to make life easier for them,” Mr. Kumador advised.
He continued: “What you can also do is to compensate them adequately. That alone is enough motivation for people to want to die in the service of Ghana. Then to say when they die their family members join I think that strategy is wrong, it’s not done anywhere in the world.”
Background
Police officers who die in the line of duty will now have qualified relatives recruited into the service to compensate for the loss, the Inspector-General of Police Dr George Akuffo Dampare has disclosed.
According to the IGP, the initiative is part of a broad range of measures being taken by the leadership of the Police Service to encourage officers to give off their best.
“When a police officer dies on duty, we have put new measures in place to ensure that a relative of the deceased officer who is qualified is recruited into the service as part of efforts to urge our officers to do their best in protecting the public,” the IGP said while delivering a public lecture at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) on Thursday.
The IGP who spoke on the theme “The changing face of policing in Ghana: expectations and the role of the university community” said his vision is to make the Police the most efficient institution in the country despite the challenges they are confronted with.
“We want a police service of the people, by the people and for the people. We want to make the service the best institution in the country and a reference point in the world”.
Dr. Dampare also urged the public to criticise the Police but do so constructively since destructive criticisms could destroy the morale of the officers.
“Criticise us but please do so constructively so that the men and women of the service are not demoralised”.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM
