Business owners in Bolgatanga have expressed reservations and condemned the modus operandi of an inspection and enforcement exercise undertaken by the National Insurance Commission and officials of security agencies in the municipality.
The owners of Hotels and private schools in Bolgatanga say they are incensed by a rather intimidating style adopted by the National Insurance Commission in its efforts to ensure compliance with the Mandatory Fire Insurance Policy for Private Commercial Buildings.
In a joint action by the Task Force of the NIC, Police and the Fire Service, 12 Private Commercial Buildings were visited, Friday in Bolgatanga.
In all, 4 schools and 8 Hotels were inspected by the National Task Force and Compliance Team. It emerged that 7 out of the 12 establishments visited had flouted the mandatory policy by failing to subscribe to either the Fire or Building Insurance.
But speaking on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East show Monday, Director of Great Victory Academy Mr. Chris Akuba said the task force team that visited the premises of the school caused “fear and panic” with the manner in which it launched entry into the school. He noted that armed police officers demonstrated a “Rambo style” of coiling situations as if they were in to foil a criminal operation. The tensed scene he added sent fear down the spines of both pupils and teachers of the school who were present.
“The team that visited the school was made up of Fire Service Officers who were about two people. About three police officers well-armed, SIC, NIC, the media in a full bus and when they got to the school it was break time. They started jumping from the cars and ransacking as if an armed robber or someone had murdered another person and has come to the school. You need to see the way the children were running here and there and a teacher had to ring a bell for break over quickly and for everyone to go inside and when we found out, it was just to inspect our Insurance certificate” Mr. Akuba narrated.
Mr. Akuba added that the NIC instead of adopting the forceful manner of dealing with defaulters should instead result to issuing court summons.
“Even if you visit the school, the owners of the properties themselves are not here. There are only representatives. But if you send a letter, the owners of the properties would have gone to court.”
Chairman of the National Task Force and Compliance Team, Joseph Bento however insisted that Friday’s exercise in Bolgatanga is a replica of what has been done in other regions and therefore cannot be intimidating.
Mr. Bento said “the police were armed but not heavily armed but you can say so. We did not go there to cause fear but it is our normal operation from Tema, Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale. It is the same mixture of people and what am saying is that, that is the way we have to operate because it is an enforcement activity.”
He added that it’s the team’s style of operations and it would continue in that regard.
By: Azongo Albert | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA
