Fighting Criminal Gangs On The High Seas....Bawumia Commends Ghana's Navy

Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has commended the Ghana Navy for clamping down on smugglers of petroleum products on the country's sea.

The Vice President on Thursday, February 15, 2018 paid a visit to the Western Naval Command at Sekondi in the Western Region to understand at first hand issues regarding illegal bunkering and other activities at sea that does not inure to the country's benefit.

During the visit, Dr. Bawumia was pleased with the level of work done by the Navy so far to arrest criminals on the sea and prevent illegal activities in order to eliminate its impact on the economy.

The Ghana Navy's Western Naval Command also seized the opportunity to express their concerns to the government.

The Command has asked government to equip it with the requisite tools to enable it to completely stamp out activities of criminal gangs on the sea.

Speaking at a ceremony to welcome Dr. Bawumia, the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Commodore Isaac Osei Kuffuor cautioned that failure to safeguard the country's territorial sea will result in criminal negligence and become avenue for smugglers to carry out their activities.

It is estimated that Ghana may lose GHS 1 billion to activities of criminal groups who smuggle petroleum products to neighbouring countries.

Some of the people involved in the illegal bunkering are reportedly connected to a wide network of Ghanaians and foreign nationals.

"Our presence is enough deterrence" to the criminal groups, Commodore Kuffour emphasized but added that the Western Naval Command is "seriously challenged by the lack of adequate resources".