Managing Editor of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Junior
• Mr Kweku Baako is asking Ghanaians to appreciate police in the country instead of overly criticising them
• According to him, claims of insecurity over recent crimes are exaggerated
• Mr Baako was contributing to discussions on recent crime activities recorded in the country
The Managing Editor of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Junior has asked Ghanaians to cut the Ghana Police Service some slack over claims that the police have failed in curtailing recent crime activities.
Mr Baako, speaking on recent crimes recorded across the country, said citizens should rather commend the police for their selflessness in dealing with the challenges despite limited resources.
“It is not fair to say the police are not doing anything at all. I think they are doing a lot within the constraints of limited resources. It is better to encourage them instead,” Citinewsroom quoted him.
The recent weeks has seen several reported cases of violent crimes which resulted in the death of some people.
On Monday, June 14, 2021, armed robbers attacked a bullion van at Jamestown in Accra.
The incident resulted in the death of a police officer who was on escort duty and a female trader in the vicinity of the attack.
Robbers struck on another bullion van in the Central Region a day after the Jamestown attack.
While the robbers were able to make away with an undisclosed amount in the Jamestown attack, those who staged an attack on the Accra-Winneba Road failed at their mission.
Despite a police swoop leading to the arrest of over 150 suspected criminals over the weekend, the police are yet to announce an arrest directly linked to the bullion van attacks.
The development coupled with some other recorded violent related crimes has led some Ghanaians to claim a state of insecurity.
But reacting to the claims of insecurity, Mr Baako, according to Citinewsroom, said the penalization of the situation based on a few crime cases is unfair and exaggerated.
“There are some people who might feel insecure relative to certain incidents of violence, especially robbery, that have taken place in recent times or the past. It is natural…and indeed such persons can transmit it to their relatives or community members. I’m not about to suggest that there are people in this country who don’t feel insecure or are not concerned about these incidents. What I’m not too sure about is whether you can move from this correct premise and generalise it to suggest that there is a state of national insecurity. I think that is a bit of an exaggeration and not a factual picture,” he said.