3,150 security personnel comprising the Ghana Police Service, Immigration, Customs, Fire Service, and Prison Service in the Upper East Region have been deployed for elections related duty ahead of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections on Monday December 7, 2020.
Out of the number, 1,450 personnel have been deployed to man polling stations in all 15 constituencies of the region. The rest will join the military to embark on patrols in all constituencies with special teams formed to respond to distress calls.
Addressing a parade on Saturday December 5, 2020 at the regional police headquarters, the Regional Police Commander and Chairman of the Election Security Task Force, DCOP, Osei-Kwaku Ampofo-Duku urged the personnel to maintain peace at their duty post.
He further cautioned the personnel against abandoning their duty post until they are properly relieved.
“We all know that it is not all that smooth. Somebody will come with his or her peculiar problem, you have to attend to him or her If it borders on security. There are certain issues that maybe brought to the polling station for instance, when somebody comes and doesn’t find his name in the register, EC has to attend to that person and explain certain things to him or her. But ours is to keep the peace. The peace of the area, the peace of the EC officers, the security of the ballot box and other voting materials.
When somebody comes and misbehaves and you want to take action, call the immediate officer around. Don’t leave your duty point until you’re properly relieved. Police men especially, I don’t know much about the other sister security services, we like the excuse of I’m going to urinate, I was running so I looked for a place of convenience, I went to buy water, please this should be a thing of the past. Don’t bring it to this election period,” He admonished.
DCOP Ampofo Duku further urged the personnel to police the ballot box until it is safely delivered at the coalition center.
Meanwhile, 100 Police Officers have been deployed from the National Capital, Accra to assist personnel in the region ensure peace before and after the election.
