Ghana Police demonstrates crowd control readiness [Photos]

The Ghana Police Service has demonstrated their readiness to combat riotous demonstrators during a riot and crowd control simulation exercise carried out at the National Police Training School at Teshie.

According to the Director in charge of Police Operations, COP John Kudalor, the exercise is to test the readiness of their personnel to manage multitudes of people and control violent demonstrations.

In a demonstration that led to the alleged physical abuse of some ‘Let My Vote Count’ demonstrators, COP Kudalor indicated that “the police used the box formation in controlling that demonstration because of the dynamics of that particular demonstration.”

He explained that, in the “force continuum”, there is a graduation in the strategies used in dispersing crowds depending on how events unfold.

He further indicated that, “in crowd control, the police gauge the mood of the crowd and apply the appropriate method in controlling the crowd.”

The participants of the simulation exercise were further trained in crowd negotiation strategies, command, arrest procedures and formation drills.

In an interview with Citi News, COP Kudalor explained that, regarding the use of water cannons, “depending on how the crowd behaves they decide whether to give ‘a cold shower’ or an appropriate shower”.

Regional Police commands across the country are expected to continue with the exercise over the next few days.
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By: Kwame Botchway/citifmonline.com/Ghana