The Inspector General of Police, Patrick Acheampong, has opened the 40th officer cadet course at the Ghana Police College with a call on police personnel to consider themselves as ambassadors of the service. He said discipline was one of the most important aspects of law enforcement and the fight against crime and other criminal activities in the country. The IGP said economic and political globalization had left in its trail a change in the breed of criminals and the scope of criminality hitherto unknown to the world. He stated that organised crimes, violent crimes, the proliferation of drugs, human trafficking and Internet fraud had become a daily occurrence all over the world and there was the need to re-orient police training and increase the number of personnel to reduce those crimes to the barest minimum. Mr Acheampong added that as a result of the increasing population of Ghana and the massive industrial, agricultural and socio- economic development, a large number of people from the sub- region and else where entered the country daily, leading to the perpetuating of crimes in the country. He said at the moment, more divisional and district commands were being created and thanked the district assemblies for providing office and residential accommodation for police personnel. He announced that the Ghana Police College had been restructured into a faculty system, with detailed syllabi and subject content. The IGP stated that henceforth, all officer cadets would undergo training in Police Science/Studies, Legal and Social Studies, Management and Communication and IT Studies among others. Mr Acheampong said the college had also assumed an international outlook through the training of cadet officers from other countries such as Liberia. He urged the cadet officers to take their studies seriously, since those who failed to meet the required standards would be withdrawn. The Commandant of the college, Chief Superintendent George Mensah, said the course had been designed to further uplift police command competency, efficiency and effectiveness. He said the college was currently the highest professional institution for police training in the country and one of the most experienced in the West African sub-region, having been established in 1959. Source: Daily Graphic