The Chairman of the National Commission on Small Arms (CNCSA), Lt Cot. Seth Ohene-Asare (rtd), has called on the security agencies at the country’s border with Cote d’Ivoire to be on the high alert to ensure that bad elements do not use Ghana as a launch pad to destabilise both Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, especially, as the country prepares for the 2012 election. He said although there was relative peace in Cote d’Ivoire, the call had become more imperative due to the porous nature of the Ghana-Cote d’Ivoire border. He made the call when he led a team which comprised members of GNCSA, UNDP and Kofi Annan Peace Keeping Centre to monitor activities at the country’s border with Cote d’Ivoire and also interact with personnel at the border posts. Other members of the team were the Executive Secretary of the GNCSA, Mr. Jones Applerh, Major Nick Darbo (Rtd), Mr. Baffuor Amoah, both board members of the Commission, and Mr. John Mark Pokoo of the Kofi Annan Peace Keeping Training Centre. The four-day fact finding mission to the western frontier of Ghana took the team to Sampa, Kwameseikrom, Gonokrom, Nkrankwanta, Oseikwadwokrom, Elubo and Half Asini. Lt Col Ohene-Asare noted that Ghana as a member of the ECOWAS, AU and the United Nations as well as its proximity to Cote d’Ivoire could not turn back Ivorians who had fled that country. However, it was incumbent on it to place a critical eye on the refugees, especially people with the intention to undertake activities that would affect the relative peace in that country and also destabilise Ghana. He said the closeness of Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire was such that any unfortunate situation in that country would have great consequences on Ghana, hence the need to Police such peace jealously. According to Lt Col. Ohene-Asare, the security agencies alone could not Police the country’s borders, it was therefore necessary that the security personnel formed close collaboration with civilians along the borders, educate them on the need to be vigilant to ensure that they reported to them any suspicious characters and activities. He said the proliferation of small arms could have serious repercussion on Ghana’s stability; result in increased crime rate and gun-related killings, which demanded a concerted action to prevent such unfortunate situation. At Sampa in the Jaman North District Assembly in the Brong-Ahafo Region where Ghana shares border with Cote d’Ivoire, the District Chief Executive, Hajia Amina Amedu, called on the government to establish a refugee camp far away from the border communities. She explained that this would ease the burden on the few security persons at the border towns in monitoring the activities of such refugees and also make it extremely difficult for the refugees to be moving along such borders for criminal activities. Although at most of the towns that the team travelled, there were no reports of criminal activities and smuggling of arms across the borders, security agencies at Sampa reported that there had been three armed robbery incidents that took place on April 18, May 9 and May 16 2011, respectively.” They reported that in all three incidents, investigations revealed that the robbers used sophisticated weapons and acted like people who have had professional training in arm usage. According to reports, during the exchange of fire between the security agencies and the armed robbers, a Police detective, Inspector William Abayateye sustained gun-shot wounds in his left arm, but no arrest was made. Source: Daily Graphic