Part 1
The issue of law and order is of very high public concern, not only to Ghanaians but also to
the international community wanting to do business in and with Ghana. Since the return to
democracy in 1992, crime has risen steadily, with the Ghanaian Police Service seemingly
unable to respond effectively. In some cases, police incompetence, misconduct and
corruption have fuelled, rather than reduce crime and violence. Few institutions have a
greater impact on the daily lives of citizens than law enforcement yet, relations between the
Ghana Police Service and citizens continue to be characterized by suspicion and mutual
hostility. Generally, the good men and women of the Ghana Police Service do a very good
job considering the enormous challenges they face on a daily basis. I salute them on the
troubles they go through in protecting lives and property throughout the four corners of
Ghana. That notwithstanding, the Ghana Police Service as an institution, needs urgent
reforms to shape the institution into a 21st century institution capable to fighting crime
within the four corners of Ghana. Reform of the Ghanaian policing system is clearly badly
needed and yet, policies have remained timid, incongruous and insincere in this area.
Currently, the Ghana Police Service is engulfed with many problems on several fronts and is
fast losing credibility even if it has not lost it already. Public trust in the Ghana Police Service
is at its lowest ebb since the establishment of the Ghana Police Service. It is sad to say that,
corruption is very rife in the Ghana Police Service. Within the police service, there is internal
corruption where contracts are inflated, contracts awarded are under-implemented, funds
allocated to specific police welfare programs disappear into private accounts of top level
officers. There are also cases of evidence tampering, disappearance of crime exhibits,
substitution of criminals with innocent persons and I dare say, planting of evidence. At
various times in the history of the Ghana Police Service, attempts have been made to reform
the police with no success. The attempts have been at best half-hearted and not thorough.
The focus of changing the Inspector General of Police (IGP) is not the solution. This is like a
man who had headache and the recommended treatment was for him to get a new hair cut
and wear a new hat. In all cases where the IGP is changed, he is replaced with another IGP
who has risen through the ranks, went through the same training, totally acculturated in the
norms and practices in the Ghana Police Service. With all due respect, I have heard it said
that, a thief knows how to catch another thief but, I have never heard it said that, a thief
can reform another thief better.
It may surprise many that, the current top brass of the Ghana Police Service do not have job
specifications. Without a job specification, how does the officer know his roles and
responsibilities, how can he be set targets, how can his performance be reviewed, how can
he know whether he is performing satisfactorily, what yard stick will he be judged on for
promotion, if he fails in his job what criteria will be used to measure his failure since there is
no job specification? No matter how scary this scenario may be, unfortunately, that is the
reality I am afraid. I lay the blame squarely at the door steps of the Police Council, defence
committee of Parliament and the Ministry of Interior for failing to ensure that, the top brass
of the Ghana Police Service had job specifications. The problems of the Ghana Police Service
as enumerated by successive IGPs and other observers include among others shortage of
manpower, poor salary and benefits, use of outdated weapons, lack of adequate and modern
telecommunication equipment, lack of vehicles, shortage of funds for operation, poor
training, ill-oriented, ill-motivated, corruption among the rank and file, poor accommodation,
political interference and poor recruitment practices. I am comfortable in saying that, most if
not all the issues listed are human resources management problems, others are
administrative while a few are operational. In other words, it is conceivable to conclude that,
these problems and challenges bedevilling the Ghana Police Service can be addressed by any
individual that is equipped with the education, experience and intelligence of a committed
manager of men and material resources.
Internal and external accountability is weak, ineffective or non-existent. Citizens contact with
the police are almost entirely involuntary, restricted to law enforcement encounters. In the
midst of all this, violent crimes such as armed robbery are on the rise across the country. A
recent US State Department Narcotics report on Ghana states categorically that, the Ghana
Police Service and other law enforcement agencies have been corrupted by drug barons and
hard criminals. The Ghana Police Service may be corrupt but then, the Ghanaian society is
also corrupt. The men and women of the Ghana Police Service are products of a corrupt
society and system, so it follows that, they will also be corrupt. This is of course not an
excuse for them but, that is the fact. They have families; they have to survive in the harsh
conditions of Ghana just like other Ghanaians. They have to make do and the only way they
know is “if you cannot beat them, you join them”. They see politicians and other civil
servants living beyond their means, probably embezzling money in the billions, sharing out
perks and contracts between them, and they have to resort to barrier blocks exhortations
mainly on commercial drivers etc. The men and women in the lower ranks of the Ghana
Police Service sees their bosses living well beyond their salaries so naturally, they have to
survive too on the highways.
There have been many instances of uncommon bravery and honesty on the part of men and
women of the Ghana Police Service. Some courageous policemen have died while battling
armed robbers in various places of the country. What happened to the families they left
behind? Were they compensated for their irretrievable loss? Is there any kind of life
insurance scheme or Government Grant or compensation scheme for policemen killed in the
line of duty as in many Western countries? What exactly do policemen in Ghana benefit from? The current government has done well by providing about a thousand vehicles to the
Ghana Police Service and they are to be commended. However, more needs to be done.
How many of these vehicles are operational today? The sad parts though are reports that,
there are no provisions for the operation and maintenance of these new vehicles and this is
not surprising considering the fact that, we are a nation that does not have a maintenance
culture. Under this government, police manpower has increased from fifteen-thousand to
twenty-five thousand and the government deserves commendation. However, as much as
recruitment has increased, we are still below the UN guidelines. We should move away from
the issue of ‘garbage in and garbage out’ with these new graduates hitting the streets every
six months and swelling the ranks of human rights abusers on the beat.
Police work transcends a lot of things these days and is highly technical and technology
intensive. Science and technology play a vital role in modern day policing because, it is very
useful in the fight against crime. In a country where electricity is moribund, police work and
others like it is severely hampered. For example, how many police stations in the country are
linked by ordinary telephones, not to talk about computers? How many of the officers are
computer-literate? Do we have a National fingerprint database? Do we have a National DNA
database? These are basic requirements of modern day policing.. I have seen police stations
lighted by lanterns. We have a long way to go and reforms are quite daunting if you think
long and hard about the problems facing us. It is an indictment on us that our police are
corrupt, ineffective, inefficient and a shame on the officers both serving and retired. It is an
indictment of our Government too but, when we recognise our deficiencies and mistakes,
that is only when we can correct them and move forward. These are precisely what the IGP
has failed to address and get across to us. If he is to admit that, the Ghana Police Service
is institutionally corrupt etc and has as a matter of urgency established a transparent
programme and policies involving all stakeholders to transform the Ghana Police Service,
then the citizenry would have understood where he was coming from and not lay into him.
As it currently stands, it is not possible for the Ghana Police Service to be reformed
internally. This is because, those who will be asked to reform it rose through the ranks- the
ranks of corruption. They are or were part of the corrupt system, so they cannot reform it.
Unfortunately, they are devoid of ideas, they have vested interests, they are corrupt and
morally bankrupt, they are too compromised and they are inept hence, help has to come
from outside the police service. We have been living it in their hands every time without any
real change. Many committees, task forces and white papers have been done internally on
reforming the police service but to no avail. The best that some IGPs have come up with is
to recommend a change in uniforms. That is their idea of reforms; an exercise in futility and
insincerity; a means of making money. I wish to convince my reader that, the IGP does not
have to be a police officer for him or her to be effective. As a matter of fact, the IGP should
be appointed from outside the police hierarchy for his reforms to be effective and far
reaching. The problem is who is progressive or radical enough to try this novel approach? It
is also important to look at the outside resources available to the government in search of an
IGP.
The job of the IGP with far reaching powers is too important to the nation to be left in the
hands of the President alone. There are highly professional lawyers, accountants,
administrators, human resources professionals, state security and military intelligence
personnel that could be cross-posted to administer reforms at the Ghana Police Service. The
police have shown over the years that it cannot reform itself to face the challenges of
modern day policing. It is therefore nor unexpected that there are calls now for overhauling
and decentralizing of the entire police service. What is our level of sincerity and desire to
seek real and lasting desired reforms? How will the reforms be implemented, monitored and
reviewed? Will our current officers not be afraid that a lot of skeletons will be exposed and
thereby affect their jobs? There is an on-going paradigm shift in the nation because, we are
looking at issues more dispassionately and the demand for service delivery is at an all time
high. I think what needs to be drummed into the heads of “Ghana’s finest” is that, they need
a completely new orientation.
Do we need a Presidential Committee on the reform of the police service to adequately
prepare it for the challenges of modern day policing? Do we need an independent police
complaints authority? Should the IGP have a specific mandate to reform, a target to achieve
and a renewable contract based on performance and service delivery? Should the top
echelons of the Ghana Police Service be appointed through a very rigorous interview and
examinations process? Should current officers be made to re-apply for their jobs through
an appointments panel to justify why they should be employed. Part 2 of my article will
attempt to offer solutions and the best way forward.
NANA YAW OSSEI
LONDON, UK.
email: [email protected]