As part of efforts in helping to curb crime in the country, Mobile Telecommunication Network (MTN) has officially launched a crime fighter code for the Ghana Police Service, which aims at helping the general public to report any crime activities to the police.
The crime fighter code, 18555, can be accessed by the general public through all networks whenever they need any form of assistance from the police, especially when they are under attack.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN, Mr Brett Goschen, noted that the crime fighter code has the responsibility of contributing to the welfare and development of local communities.
“ Through this short code, the police will be available on call 24/7 and enable them to quickly respond to crime incident as well as to answer queries and provide advice on crime related issues”, Mr Goschen affirmed.
The CEO emphasized that the police service has over the years earned an excellent reputation in dealing with and preventing crime in the country while admitting that their challenges were increasing due to the dynamic nature of society.
He stressed that as a leading telecommunication company in Ghana with 54% market shares and over 7million subscribers in Ghana, the success and prosperity of the company lies in the forefront of their customers and as such their safety and security means a lot to them.
“The security of Ghanaians is something which means a lot to our company because of their involvement in the usage of our valuable network, the toll free short code has come to help the general public to call on the Police Service for them to deliver their duties favourably”, he noted.
Mr Goschen urged the police to maintain the high standards they have set over the years, and was hopeful that the toll free code will go a long way to enhance their operations.
The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, expressed gratitude to the management of MTN for their kind gesture, noting that fighting crime is the sworn responsibility of the police and they were therefore ever ready to fight criminals.
Paul Quaye, IGP
Mr Quaye noted that that the short code will be of immense assistance to the police and members of the public who are usually traumatized during attacks by criminals.
He appealed to the general public to look up to what MTN has done and come to their aid to enhance their delivery of quality service.
The IGP advised the general public to desist from calling emergency lines to give false information warning that such false alarms are against the law and culprits will be punished according to law.
The deputy Minister of Communication, Hon. Gideon Quarcoo, commended MTN for their upfront responsibility in helping to improve the education in the country. He further lauded the company for coming out with what he described as “a laudable initiative” to fight crime in the country.
He urged the Police Administration to advertise the crime fighter code so that everybody will be abreast of the code so that they can deliver information to the police when the need arise.
BY BEATRICE DEDE ASIEDU AND MELODY CEASAR