Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Patrick E. Timbillah, Ashanti Regional Police Commander, has stressed the need for police personnel to acquire more knowledge in order to prove equal to their task as law enforcement agents. He said some of the personnel in the service lack the confidence to carry out their duties boldly because they are not armed with the requisite knowledge. Mr Timbillah was speaking in Kumasi at the weekend during the closing of a two-week capacity building training for junior police officers. The participants were selected from the Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Eastern, Upper East, Upper West and the Northern Regions, representing the Northern sector of the country. The Police Commander said the current world of globalization and its challenges called for the need for the personnel to build their capacities to be able to meet world standards. "In a democratic dispensation, you must work professionally to meet the job's challenges as well as meet the satisfaction of the public," he stressed. He charged the law enforcers to open themselves up for new knowledge through reading and learning so as to exhibit a high level of professionalism to operate efficiently towards the democratic system of government which has now dominated the world. The DCOP advised the policemen to exercise discretion in carrying out their duties by operating under the law, adding that by so doing, human rights would be observed. Additionally, this would also elicit support from the public to help combat crime which is a shared responsibility, he said. Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Raymond Adofiem, Commanding Officer of the Police Training School at Ho, and facilitator of the training programme, stated that protecting the citizenry in a democratic state without violating their human rights requires specific professional training skills for police personnel. "Appropriate strategies and methods of delivery, assessment and content have thus been carefully designed for the training to enable participants to become efficient and effective in their jobs. “The Very Reverend DSP Jonas Aboagye, the Ashanti Regional Police Chaplain, in an address urged the personnel to be morally upright since they are supposed to be role models in the society. Lance Corporal Naomi Fordjour, a participant who spoke on behalf of her colleagues, thanked the police administration for organizing the programme, saying the trainees tend to forget what they are taught at the time of recruitment, and prayed that the exercise would continue to put personnel back on track so as to enhance the image of the Service. Source: GNA