Two senior officers of the Ghana Police Service have been accused of unprofessional conduct by residents of the Vanguard Heights a 36-unit, block of residential apartments in East Cantonments, in Accra. The property, owned by BCM Ghana, has been the subject of dispute between the company and Mrs Angela List, the estranged wife of the major shareholder of BCM.
According to a formal complaint addressed to the Director General of the Police Intelligence and Professional Standards Bureau, and sighted by this reporter, on Sunday, 23rd January 2022 two police officers who gave their names as Chief Superintendent Michael Amankwah and Joshua Omane arrived at the apartments in unregistered Kia Picanto and said they wanted to externally inspect two apartments as part of an ongoing investigation, so they were allowed in.
Later on, residents realized that there was loud banging coming from an area of the apartments, and went to check what was happening. They found the two police officers supervising a carpenter to barricade the front door of one of the apartments, occupied by an employee of BCM Group. When they were questioned as to why they were doing that work and whether they had a court order they said that they did not, and the apartment complex’s private security guard was asked to escort them off the premises. Unconfirmed reports indicate that they were acting under the instruction of Mrs List, despite an injuction restraining her from interfering with the peaceful occupation of the premises.
The residents have questioned why ‘Chief Superintendent Michael Amankwah and Joshua Omane would lie to gain access to the apartment complex to carry out an illegality’ and asking their incentive and motive? The complaint has also noted that the officers had exposed the Ghana Police Service to the potential of being sued for disregarding a court order and called their action ‘unpatriotic, underhanded, dishonest, self-serving, unprofessional, irresponsible and reckless’
Police misconduct such as brutality, dishonesty, fraud, and abuse of authority has been one of the cornerstones of the IGP’s drive for professionalism and, to date, he has made it a point to act swiftly and without fear or favour. In the latter part of 2021, twenty-eight (28) personnel were dismissed for showing unprofessionalism, ranking from Constables, Deputy Superintendents of Police, Superintendents, Chief Superintendents and Assistant Commissioners. Most came as a result of complaints lodged by the public, with a total of 181 cases registered from January to August 2020.
