In consonance with President Akufo-Addo’s governance style of touching base with the citizenry, the Minister for the Interior, Mr. Ambrose Dery, together with the Deputy Interior Minister and some officials from the Ministry of the Interior have undertaken familiarization tours to the Western and Central Regions to see at first hand challenges facing Agencies under the Ministry in those regions.
The tour was also to commend them for their professionalism and dedication to hard work despite the challenges confronting them.
The two Regional tours were undertaken between October 9 to 11, 2017 and October 31st to 1st November, 2017 for the Western and Central Regions respectively where he interacted with and charged personnel to exhibit more professionalism and dedication in the discharge of their duties.
Addressing personnel, Mr. Dery, indicated that, it was important for him as the sector Minister, to meet and interact with personnel to know at first-hand what their challenges are and how they can collectively strategise to have them resolved.
He reiterated that, the success of the President’s flagship programmes such as the Free SHS, One District; One Factory, One Village; One Dam, reintroduction of the Teachers and Nurses Allowance is underpinned by the presence of peace and security and thus charged personnel to work at maintaining such at all times.
The Minister further added that, it was not enough that crime rates were declining but tasked the agencies to work hard at ensuring that President Akufo-Addo’s vision of making Ghanaians feel safe and secured is achieved.
Mr. Ambrose Dery applauded the level of collaboration between the various security agencies within the region and called for much more of such with other state institutions since security was a shared responsibility. He therefore appealed to the public to provide the agencies with timely and relevant information and desist from attacking security agencies.
He assured them of Government’s commitment to resourcing the Agencies to enable them deliver on their mandate whilst improving on their welfare through packages such as the pilot insurance scheme by the Ghana Police Service which would be replicated in all agencies, promotion of all officers due for promotion, timely releases of budgetary allocations and the payment of allowances, particularly rent allowance for the Ghana National Fire Services and Prisons Services.
Mr. Dery further revealed the Governing Councils of the Security Agencies have been tasked to take steps to confirm Service Commanders in acting positions as substantive Commanders.
The Minister charged the Agencies to remain resolute in the discharge of their mandate to ensure acts such as vigilantism, land guards, human trafficking, Galamsey and other crimes do not prevail.
He warned that, any Police Commander who fails to arrest, investigate and prosecute perpetuators of vigilantism within his or her district would be sanctioned.
He further called on them to be fair in their dealings with all persons irrespective of their political affiliations. This, he said, would engender trust and confidence in the Security Agencies among the populace.
Agencies visited during the tours included, the Regional Command of Ghana Police Service, Ghana National Fire Service, Ghana Immigration Service, Ghana Prisons Service, and Regional Head Quarters of the National Disaster Management Organisation, Peace Council and the Narcotics Controls Board.
