Police strengthen recruitment procedures

Page 46: Daily Graphic, June 3, 2010.
Story: Albert K. Salia
Police strengthen recruitment procedures
THE Police Administration has strengthened safeguards in its recruitment procedures to prevent miscreants from being enlisted into the Ghana Police Service.
In line with that, persons seeking recruitment into the service will have to go through more rigorous physical, background and certificate checks before they are recruited.
According to the Police Administration, no one will be exempted from the selection criteria and those who do not measure up to the new requirements will not be entertained.
The Police Administration has fixed the latter part of June or early July, this year for the next recruitment exercise by which time a number of ongoing accommodation projects would have been handed over to the service.
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, told the Daily Graphic that recruitment into the service would be handled in a manner that would make it impossible for miscreants or persons without the calling to join the Ghana Police Service.
He said the Police Administration had set a criteria for subsequent recruitment into the service and anyone who did not meet the requirements would not be recruited.
“This is what we term positive purging. We will check every information provided, the references, verification of certificates and qualifications, among others,” he said.
Mr Quaye said the Police Administration was already having problems with some persons on protocol enlistment or those recommended by persons in positions of trust.
He said if it was found that an applicant lied while providing information, that person’s name would be deleted from the list and also would be liable for prosecution.
He added that there would be no wholesale passing out as was the case in the past.
According to him, the attitude, character, comportment and performance of trainees would be assessed and anyone who fell short of any of the training requirements would be sent home.
Mr Quaye said the new training regime required that any trainee who was repeated once would not be allowed to be repeat for the second time while an outright failure would warrant dismissal.
“We want to ensure that those who pass-out are those who deserve to wear the uniform,” he said.
The IGP said the curriculum for police training was being revised, and instructors would also have to meet the requisite capabilities of instructors.
Mr Quaye said after trainees had also passed out, he or she would be under probation for one year during which they would be monitored and observed.
“If the reports from the supervisors are favourable, the Police Administration will then endorse or confirm the enlistment into the service,” he added.