BY ESTER MWAATA KATONGO IN ANGOLA
Angolan Minister of Interior, His Excellency, Angela da Veiga Tavares says his Ministry has been closely monitoring all Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (SARPCCO) Joint operations in the Southern Region with keen interest and has since described the operations as successful.
The Minister noted that the joint operations undertaken by SARPCCO were essential in curbing cross-border crime because it was evident that some criminal activities were being perpetrated by criminals across borders.
The Minister was speaking when Inspector General of the Zambia Police, Mr Kakoma Kanganja who is the current SARPCCO Chairperson paid a courtesy call on him at his Office today.
"SARPCCO is a very important organisation as it strengthens relationships and coordination among member Countries".
He added that Angola had begun the process of enhancing the technical capabilities of its Law Enforcement Agencies for effective policing.
He called on SARPCCO to do its best in devising mechanisms which would help in combating transnational organised crime.
We are aware of our mandate in supporting SARPCCO activities and we will ensure that all the programs are implemented," he said.
Inspector General of Police , Mr. Kakoma Kanganja commended Angola for taking an active role in fostering regional cooperation as evidenced by the country's willingness to host most SARPCCO activities.
Mr Kanganja said SARPCCO has a mandate to capacitate law enforcement agencies in the region through training.
He commended the Interior Ministry for providing high standard technical assistance to the Angolan Law Enforcement Agencies.
Mr Kanganja commended Angola for volunteering to host the forthcoming 10th Edition of the SARPCCO Games scheduled for August this year. The games are an initiative aimed at promoting physical fitness and networking among police operatives in the fight against transnational organised crime. He also called on other governments to support the ideals of SARPCCO which are aimed at providing a safe and secure environment for sustainable development in line with the SADC objectives.
The Inspector General is in Angola on his continued mission of monitoring and evaluating progress made in implementing decisions made by SADC Chiefs of Police Sub Committee of the Interstate, Defence and Security Committee.
He is accompanied by Director of Criminal Investigations Department , Mr Michael Nsofwa and the Head of the Interpol Regional Bureau for Southern Africa, Mr Mubita Nawa.
Earlier, the Inspector General held meetings with the Commander General of the Angola National Police, Paulo De Almeida and other senior officers.
In his remarks, General Almeda described the security situation of Angola as stable. He was however concerned that despite putting in various interventions, traffic accidents remained a source of concern saying more still needs to be done.
" We have major concerns in traffic accidents. The first quarter of 2019, we recorded 2, 404 road traffic accidents in which 677 lives were lost," he said.
He said Angola had embarked on a program of investing in capacity building and technology so as to improve public security and safety.
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