Monrovia – As UNMIL draws down, the United Nations Police (UNPOL) Commissioner, Simon Blatchly, has admonished members of the Liberia National Police (LNP) to work closely with other security apparatus to uphold the rule of law.
Report by Augustine T. Tweh – [email protected]
Commissioner Blatchly said policing is one of the most challenging tasks confronting the security sector of the country. He encouraged members of LNP to follow the rule of law in administering justice without political fear or favor.
“Policing is a challenging work, you have to follow the rule of law and you must remain neutral at all times without political fear or favor to just uphold the law.
It is a difficult job but one of the most rewarding,” he said.
Commissioner Blatchly thanked the LNP for acknowledging the work of UNPOL over the past 15 years in complementing the work of the LNP.
He made the statement on Monday, March 26, at the honoring and farewell program held at Headquarters of LNP in Monrovia, where he and 28 members of the United Nations Police were honored by the Liberia National Police for their tireless efforts in keeping peace in Liberia.
Commissioner Blatchly also expressed condolence to the families of the 21 fallen armed men and women of UNMIL who lost their lives while on a peace keeping mission in Liberia, adding that the LNP has come a long way and it’s about time to sustain the peace themselves.
“On behalf of the 16,178 UNPOL from over 16 countries who came to Liberia in 2003, we also want to honor 21 UNPOL who lost their lives while they were trying to bring peace to Liberia.”
“It is now important that the LNP moves forward from the basis in their halves to continue their work with the communities to build on the step that the LNP currently has,” Blatchly averred.
For his part, the Inspector General of the LNP, Patrick T. Sudue, expressed gratitude to the United Nations for its unflinching contributions toward the enhancement of global peace and security as well as its immense contributions to the growth and development of the Liberia.
“It can be recalled, on 18th of August 2003, a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was signed in Accra, Ghana which brought to an end a 14-year of devastated civil unrest and ushered in a transitional political arrangement that led to 2005 elections that brought Madam Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to power as Liberia and Africa’s first democratically elected female president,” he said.
Inspector Sudue said that UNMIL through its United Nations Police (UNPOL) has immensely contributed to the revamping of the security sector in the areas of recruitment, training and human resource capacity building and infrastructure development and the provisions of operational equipment such as vehicles, motorbikes, office equipment, uniforms, and accessories, among others.