COMMUNITIES MUST BUILD THEIR OWN POLICE STATIONS-COMMANDER

The Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Nathan Kofi Boakye, has hinted that the Ghana Police Service does not have enough resources to put up new Police Stations and Posts in communities that require such social amenities. 

The Service is now relying on communities without such facilities and philanthropists to finance the construction of the Police Stations while the Police Administration is ever ready to provide the needed human resource to  provide security for the people in the beneficiary areas. 

DCOP Kofi Boakye made this known in Kumasi at the inauguration of a Police Station at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.

  

The construction of the Police Station was initiated by the immediate past Chief Executive Officer of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital on the advice of the Regional Police Commander in response to insecurity at the premises of Ghana’s second major referral health facility following a mob attack on the staff of the facility due to the lost of a new born child there early last year.

 It was financed from the Hospital’s internally generated funds at a cost of more than 50 thousand Ghana Cedis.

 It has a Charge Office with two temporal Cells for male and female suspect, a Station Officer’s Office, as well as a CID’s office. Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCoP Nathan Kofi Boakye, disclosed that the facility brings to 11 the total number of new Police Stations built in the Ashanti region since he assumed duty a little over one year ago.

 Apart from these, one additional Police Division, eight Police Districts and 10 Police Posts have also been constructed with while 10 new more to be outdoored by closed of the week. 

According to the Regional Police Commander, the expansion of existing Police facilities in the region is in line with the Ghana Police Administration’s strategy to bring poling to the door-step of the citizenry.

 DCoP Kofi Boakye noted that the national socio-economic challenges do not permit the government to adequately meet the security needs and challenges of the growing society. 

He said the springing up of new communities, emergence of new crimes in addition to population growth have contributed to the worsening police-civilian ratio.

 There is therefore, the need for corresponding increase in police strength, infrastructure and logistics whose provision must be shared among all the interested parties to boost police operations. 

DCoP Kofi Boakye was particularly happy for the provision of the Police Station at the hospital since it will help address the issue of intrusion at the facility by all manner of people. 

The Chief Executive Officer of the Hospital, Dr. Joseph Akpaloo noted that need for a dedicated Police Station to cater for the security needs of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital stems from the fact that the hospital has grown to become a community on its own. 

According to Dr. Akpaloo, apart from its staff strength of nearly four thousand,  the facility records an average of one thousand 300 out-patients daily with about 800 patients on admission at any given time. 

These and other factors continue to pose major security challenge to the internal security arrangement to adequately protect life and property there. 

He noted with regret, the use of the hospital as a thoroughfare by both individuals and drivers thereby affecting negatively, for which reason there is avoidable delay access to emergency service points for ambulances and medical staff.

 The Ashanti Regional Minister, Peter Anarfi-Mensah promised to provide the new station with two new motorbikes to facilitate the patrols of the police personnel within the hospital.