The Director-General of the Research, Planning and Transformation Directorate (RPTD) of the Ghana Police Service, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Dr. Ernest Owusu, has urged police personnel to respect the rights of civilians in the exercise of their functions.
He also asked them to perform their duties professionally and encourage community engagement to ensure public safety.
DCOP Dr. Owusu made the call last Friday at the closing ceremony of a four-day training seminar organized by the RPPTD with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF), a German political foundation, to promote governance and civic education in Accra.
The training brought together 30 police officers, including five women, from the Criminal Investigation Department and Legal and Prosecutions, Motor Traffic and Transportation Department (MTTD) from across the country.
It aims to equip participants with the necessary skills and knowledge in the areas of public police management and human rights to improve professionalism and public-police relations.
Dcop Dr. Owusu said, “Recently, the Police Administration has issued interventions and strategies to enhance the potential of human resources for effective service delivery and restore public confidence.”
“The Ghana Police Service is operating in four thematic areas, which are restoring public image, commanding public respect, regaining public confidence and cementing police legitimacy”, he noted.
Dcop Dr. Owusu said that since October 2021, 240 police officers have been trained on human rights and community involvement issues.
He asked the participants pass on their knowledge to colleagues.
The Regional Programme Coordinator of HSF, Ms Aridja Frank, called for effective cooperation between the police and the civilian population in crime prevention.
“If there is no cooperation between law enforcement and citizens, this would jeopardize peace and stability in the country” she said.
GPS Research Director Emmanuel Akonnor, Deputy Commissioner of Police (ACP), reiterated the appeal to police personnel to protect the image of the service.
He challenged the participants to be agents of transformation in the fulfillment of their tasks.
Topics discussed included police responsibilities and professionalism, critical stakeholder roles in the policing, integrity, change of attitudes, policing and media, human rights in the policing, community policing.
The others were educational and neighborhood watch formation and activities, counseling, stress and mental health, law enforcement supervision, and codes of conduct and ethics.
Certificates were given to the participants after a successful completion of the training.
