Wa killing: Community policing must be strengthened – Security Analyst

A security analyst, Dr Victor Doke is advocating for the use of community policing to address insecurity in communities.

According to him, during security crises, there are occasions when the police must temporarily withdraw, necessitating community efforts to maintain security.

The Ghana Police Service has commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of two people in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region.

The two incidents were recorded on Tuesday at the Wa East Education Service office and the Wa Model JHS School.

“We would like to assure the public, especially the residents of Wa, to remain calm as the police work to get those involved arrested to face justice,” the service said in a statement.

Speaking on the JoyNews AM show, Mr Doke stated that “we should stick to the basics of community policing. If we have to now start and then engage the community, the elders, the chiefs, and get some volunteers who would go through some requisite training about basic security and enhancing the welfare of the community to do that, we need to do that”.

Dr Doke noted that when police officers withdraw, community members often experience insecurity, fearing that similar incidents could recur.

The security analyst recommended community policing and urged civil society to bolster efforts to educate residents about reporting suspicious activities.

“Let us enhance the involvement of civil society, then we can sensitise and educate the people on what to report in case they see anything; if they have suspicions of any movement or any individual in the town, they should quickly report to the police and not take the law into their own hands,” he noted.