Ghana police asked to change tactics to deter election-related violence

Security architect and columnist Lieutenant Colonel Martin Dziedzorm Dey has cautioned that the Ghana Police Service’s long-standing tactic of deploying in large numbers to deter election-related violence has repeatedly failed to control crowd behaviour.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Lt Col Dey said police crowd-control deployments often allow voters and onlookers to come into direct contact with sensitive areas such as polling stations, ballot boxes, and Electoral Commission officials, a practice he described as “out of the norm” and one that leaves security personnel vulnerable to attack.

He stressed the need for effective physical crowd management and dispersal measures, starting with the segmentation of polling stations using barriers to channel voters in an orderly manner.

This, he explained, would allow for process engineering to regulate entry and exit points.

Lt Col Dey recommended a two-layer security perimeter- Inner Perimeter, Securing the immediate area around officials and ballot boxes within at least a 30-metre radius, manned by unarmed personnel backed by undercover armed officers.

He called for a review of the standard operating procedure that prohibits weapons near ballot boxes, citing changing threat dynamics.

Outer perimeter, a strong cordon of crowd-control specialists, supported by a protection team stationed 80–100 metres away to conduct protection intelligence, detect rising tensions, and prevent surges toward polling stations.

He said such measures would help end the recurring scenes of violence, ballot box snatching, and loss of lives on election days.

“The mantra of thuggery — beating people, stealing ballot boxes, and endangering lives — must come to an end. The police must move beyond the false sense of security that comes with numbers and adopt a more strategic approach,” he urged.

His comments come as political parties prepare for a by-election in Akwatia following the death of the area’s Member of Parliament.

Source: GNA

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