Public Agenda (Accra)
Daniel Akwasi Amankwaah
25 July 2008
opinion
In a book entitled Prohibition: The Era of Excess, Sinclair Andrews writing about the efforts of the US Government to prohibit alcohol use in the l920s, offers a very good lesson for what is currently happening at the Narcotics Control Board.
The low level of salaries and allowances to Narcotics officers is the major hindrance to effective drug controls in Ghana. Sinclair in the above book stated at page 183 "the salaries of Prohibition Agents compared unfavourably with those of garbage collectors". This is exactly what is happening in Ghana. The salaries of Narcotics Officer are lower than the salaries of garbage collectors. In fact garbage collectors are far better off than narcotics officers. After all, the garbage collectors do not face the risks narcotics officers face. Garbage collectors have the time they close. They are not called at odd hours to go on operations. They do not have to stand and smell somebody's toilet for hours. What are the results of the poor working conditions?
Sinclair, in his book noticed that (page 184) "in the first eleven years of the Prohibition Bureau, there were 17,972 appointments to the service, 11,982 separations from the service without prejudice and 1604 dismissals for acts including bribery, extortion, theft, violation of the National Prohibition Act, falsification of records, conspiracy forgery, perjury and other causes."
This is also the picture of what is happening at the Narcotics Control Board. The office was established in 1991. In 2006 Narcotics Control Officers in Ghana were not up to 50. At the same time there were more than 50 people who have passed through the work. Majority of these people resigned from the job and these were very good officers in terms of experience and skills. Some were sacked for various reasons others just left the job and a few are on interdiction or leave for a very long time.
At page 184, Sinclair wrote "the rapid turnover in the prohibition service and the notoriety of some of its agents, gave it a bad name. One disgruntled Prohibition Administrator called the Bureau a training school for 'Bottleggers' because of the frequency with which agents left the service to sell their expert knowledge to their old enemies".
In our situation some of the people who have resigned from NACOB have a lot of experience in drug control. Are these people selling their expertise to drug dealers? Will somebody classify Nacob as a place where people are trained and because of very poor conditions of service they leave? After they have gained experience and have left what happens? Do they sell their expertise to their old enemies?
In November, 2007 about 40 graduates were employed. As I write, three have already left the job. At least these people underwent some form of training but they are gone. Others are frantically finding ways to leave.
Some of the people resigned from their work to take up positions at NACOB. That is not bad but that decision has shocked some of them. Very recently their pay started coming and surprise! Some were taken 450 but are now taken 170 new Ghana cedis. One officer who was taken 370 dollars in his former place is now taken 140 new Ghana cedis at NACOB. You will ask why. It is because when that amount was stated on their appointment letters they thought there were some other allowances only to realize that there is nothing apart from the pay.
Some also heard the promise of some key Honourable Ministers who promised solemnly that they will do all that they can to restructure the place and change this shameful conditions of service. True, they have done something. There are now nice offices, some new cars. The structure is now built. The number of officers has increased to about 140. Regional offices are being created. Many things have happened at the Narcotics Control Board but the salaries are the same. The same conditions where on paper there are allowances but in reality, no allowance is paid.
The promise to restructure NACOB and change the salary came two years ago. I do not know much about how many months or years that it will take to change the salary structure or at least pay the allowances that are only on paper. Documentation upon documentations have been submitted to where they should be submitted but very little has come out of it.
We have stayed in this condition for 17years. Do not ask me why we are still in it. Some of us are destined to work to prevent drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking no matter the pay.
I remember 12 years ago when as the first graduate permanent worker at the Narcotics Control Board I attempted to raise this issue. I was a teaching assistant at the modern languages Department. I was taking 400,000 old cedis at that time. I joined Nacob only to be paid 250,000. Please do not insult me. Mine was destined. At one of our meetings I raised the low salary issue. I was asked to sit down and keep quite or resign. I chose the former advice that is why I am now a Principal Narcotics Officer taking 320 new Ghana cedis. Since that day nobody could talk till now. Now we are fed up and we could see the danger if nothing is done about the situations.
But I trust the new Minister. We can wait a little. He will do it. We have a new condition of service but the financial aspect is not being implemented for the reason that that portion should be approved by the Ministry of Finance. So since NACOB was established there has never been anything like duty allowance, risk allowance, accommodation allowance, responsibility allowance, acting allowance. People just work. Those who can resign resigned. Those who cannot resign are asked to keep quiet and be there.
Another sad issue about this situation is that since NACOB was established none of the permanent workers is part of top management. These are the people who should lead us present our case to the authorities but fortunately for them, they are not affected by the low salaries. They are all seconded from different organizations and their pay is about three times ours. As a result, they seem not to care much.
It is the current restructuring that promised some hope but again the hope has fizzled into thin air. Even the old people were not given the chance to apply for the top positions that became vacant. So again no old staff is part of the top management. I think this is not fair at all. At least give us the dog's chance.
Sinclair, wrote at page 184 of his book "an efficient enforcement agency demands three things: Continuity of personnel, enough salaries and public and federal cooperation". I do not know whether or not NACOB has any of these three essentials.
My fear
My fear about the salaries and the condition of service is that the officers are dealing with people who have money, big money. How long can they stand the incessant temptation of being bribed? Consider a starved officer who has been offered a "gift". I do not know much about angels but I am tempted to believe that under certain circumstances even angels succumb to temptations.
The drug situation: very disturbing
Let us also consider the drug situation now. How can drugs be everywhere like that? Are our future safe? Drug abuse and drug trafficking are the sources of numerous crimes. I know that there is no crime that has nothing to do with drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking.
Armed robbery? The person is on drugs he needs money and when he is going to steal, he takes the drug so that he can kill without any feelings.
Prostitution? The person needs money so he sells the body. For the person to sell the body without shame he takes drugs.
Road accidents? He takes drugs so he sees the road which is one lane to be about four lanes. The traffic light is red but he sees it to be red and green at the same time. Think of others like terrorism, civil wars, etc.
What has happend to the Elmina and Akosombo workshops?
The restructuring of the Board become necessary after the MV Benjamin Case brought to light some lapses in the operations of the Board. With the world's eyes on Ghana as a transit point of narcotics drugs, the government realized the need to restructure the Board. This brought about the Akosombo and the Elimina Workshop and just recently, the Swedru Workshop.
The famous Elimina and Akosombo workshops outlined some measures to be taken to ensure a thorough overhauling of the Board. These recommendations as it were, were supposed to change the destiny of the Narcotics Control Board.
Some of the recommendations of these workshops included the raising of the status of the Board to a commission under the office of the President, creating of specialized courts to deal with Narcotic cases, improvement in the salaries and conditions of service for the staffs of the Board, amendment of the PNDCL 236 etc.
Yes, some of the recommendations have been carried out but we are still yet to see the Board metamorphosing into a commission. We are yet to see a change in the salary structure of the Board. It might interest you to know that, staffs of the Board are on a salary scale that existed in 1999.
As it is now, the Board can only be said to have been restructured in terms of a few new cars, furnishing of a few offices, increase in human resource base, attempts at creating few zonal offices.
It is very clear, that not so much has been done as far as the various workshops are concerned. According to Sinclair "when drastic measures were taken to reform the Bureau by President Hoover after 1927, it was already too late. Is it too late to bring the recommendations of these expert workshops into action?
There are many things on drugs to talk about but let discerning minds consider these matters for now. As Javier Peres De Cuellar, former Secretary General of the United Nations put it, "Let us not underestimate this threat. We are talking about personal tragedy, severe damage to health, the destruction of society, economic breakdown, the undermining of democratic institution, corruption, violence and death"
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