Ghana’s police boss warns public against fomenting trouble during 7 December election.
Accra, Ghana (PANA) - Ghana’s Inspector General of Police(IGP) James Oppong-Boanuh Wednesday sent a stern warning to persons intending to foment trouble in the country’s 7 December general election that they would be severely dealt with in accordance with the law, local media reported here.
The IGP gave the warning while inspecting a parade at the Eastern Regional Police Command Headquarters, Koforidua, some 60 km east of Accra, Wednesday.
Oppong-Boanuh cautioned that the Ghana Police Service would deal with persons that intend to perpetrate any violence during the December polls to jeopardize the peace of the country.
He warned that "the police will not condone any misconduct from political party faithful before, during and after the elections", adding that perpetrators would be arrested and prosecuted, irrespective of their political affiliations.
In an interview with the state-run Daily Graphic, Oppong-Boanu, who was on a day’s working visit to the Eastern regional capital, said persons going to the polling station should act within the confines of the electoral laws and must not carry any offensive weapons.
He said caution would be backed by ruthless actions as was seen during the voter registration exercise which saw some political actors including members of parliament (MP) and party faithful investigated and prosecuted.
Oppon-Boanu explained that his working visit was to assess the operational readiness of the police in the Eastern Region in anticipation of a keenly contested general election.
The IGP said the Police Operations had earmarked various flashpoints across the country going into the general election and would act accordingly to avert any violence during, before and after the December polls.
He expressed the hope that the Police would not be complacent in the discharge of their duties but would remain resolute in their operations at all polling stations and collation centres to protect the sanctity of the election.
Additionally, service personnel to be deployed at various polling stations and collation centres will be given special armlet to make for easy identification to the public.
The IGP appealed to police officers in the region to remain very professional in the discharge of their duty during the election period, urging them to remain very neutral and not biased towards any political party.
-0- PANA RA 28Oct2020
