-AS ECOWAS and MOJ call for proper maintenance and citizen participation
By: G Bennie Bravo Johnson
The Liberia National Police, in partnership with the European Union (EU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), inaugurated the Data Collection and Registration Center (DACORE) of Liberia on Friday, June 23, 2023, marking an important milestone achievement in the implementation of the West African Police Information System Programme (WAPIS) in Liberia.
Serving as keynote speaker at the Ceremony, the Attorney General of the Republic of Liberia, Cllr. Frank Musa Dean, recognized the significance of applauding the head of ECOWAS for embracing the WAPIS concepts advanced by the West African chiefs of police committee WAPPCO to combat transnational organized crime and terrorism through digital information sharing in real-time.
He acknowledged that it couldn’t be done without the effort of the European Union, especially through the provision of funds. He also thanked the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) for the implementation of the WAPIS program and operations in ECOWAS countries and Mauritania.
The Liberian Justice Minister narrated that it is perhaps noteworthy to State that Liberia joined the West African Police Information System in the latter part of 2017 and was immediately appointed a single point of contact (SPOC) and subsequently legal and technical experts to start the implementation of the WAPIS Program.
“Liberia signed the memorandum of incorporation (MOI) with Interpol in October 2018, thus becoming the first country in the region to have signed such a MOJ. Office space was identified, renovated, and equipped through intervention from Interpol for the Data Collection and Registration Center (DACORE)”.
He added that officers from the Liberia National Police (LNP), Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), and Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LEDA) have been trained to operate the WAPIS equipment at their respective institutions.
Cllr. Dean further said that INTERPOL had resumed activities in Liberia after facing several setbacks during the initial phase of the implementation of the WAPIS Program, including COVID-19, the Mid-term Senatorial election, and the completion and signing of the legal framework for the program. He added.
Meanwhile, the head of the WAPIS Program said the inauguration of the Data Collection and Registration Center (DACORE) of Liberia marks an important milestone in the implementation of the West African Police Information System Program in Liberia.
According to Mr.Richard Gotwe, DACORE Liberia will allow Liberia to join the 15 WAPIS participant countries.
that have already established their DACORE in the region.
This DACORE Will assist in the collection, storage, analysis, and sharing of electronic criminal data among the Law Enforcement Agencies in Liberia and reinforce their capacity to collaborate with other Law Enforcement Agencies outside Liberia, in the West African region, and with the rest of the world community of Law Enforcement agencies, with the ultimate goal of combating INTERPOL For official use only.
Gotwe added that A police information system contains sensitive data, such as personal data, and must therefore operate within an appropriate legal framework. An executive order was signed in January 2023 by the President of the Republic of Liberia to comply with this condition.
“However, as you know, the executive order is a temporary measure, and I must
mention the need to turn it into law to prevent everything that we have been
Building over these years has been fruitless due to the lack of a legal framework.
He Said The Liberian parliament is working on the final adoption of this legal text, and I wish to encourage the authorities to continue this strong political commitment.
The WAPIS head of the Program narrated that security challenges in the West African sub-region are increasing; drug trafficking, migrant smuggling, maritime piracy, and terrorism are some of these challenges.
“Sahelian jihadist groups now see the coastal countries of West Africa,
Including Liberia as a new land of expansion, INTERPOL is committed to supporting Liberia in the long fight against these threats”.
He said the WAPIS Program has already provided more than 40 workstations, including scanners, and has contributed to the renovation and operationalization of the center where we are today, including the delivery and installation of servers.
“The creation of a network of interconnected WAPIS terminals is ongoing, and we are committed to investing in solar panels to ensure
Electricity gaps are bridged, and Interpol is for official use in all forms of crime, in particular transnational crimes and terrorism, and to provide a safer environment to citizens”.
He said that without the political support of the ECOWAS Commission, it would have been very difficult to implement the WAPIS Program; therefore, allow me to thank the ECOWAS Commission for always standing by INTERPOL.
The WAPIS Program has organized several training sessions in which 24 officers have already participated. Many more are to come, and to ensure sustainability, a pool of national WAPIS trainers will soon be trained.
The development of standard operating procedures and an inclusive awareness event are also planned by INTERPOL in the coming months.
At the same time, the Resident Representative of the President of the ECOWAS Commission in Liberia has called for the need for a citizen-police relationship in information sharing in order to achieve the newly inaugurated DACORE at the headquarters of the Liberia National Police in Monrovia.
Madam Josephine Nkrumah said Security involves not just the agencies, but the role of the Citizens in remaining vigilant and security conscious is pivotal as a holistic approach to security.
She said the WAPIS Program is all the more essential in these times because West Africa is facing enormous security challenges and the sub-region is plagued by transnational organized crime, which represents a major concern and involves many activities such as trafficking in persons, drugs, and firearms.
Such illicit activities result in the dangerous development of money laundering and terrorism financing and, thus, affect the countries’ economic and social sectors as well as the well-being and health of their populations.
These threats are exacerbated by the free movement of goods, capital, and people provided by the treaty establishing the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), signed in Lagos, Nigeria, on May 28, 1975, by sixteen West African nations and revised in Cotonou, Benin, in 1993.
“While the economic integration of West African States is yielding undeniable benefits for the member countries, it should be noted that the free movement of people and goods also represents an
If there is an efficient opportunity for criminals to flourish in their illicit activities, a control system should be implemented at border points. And notably, the different West African countries lack an appropriate tool to collect, store, manage, analyze, and share criminal data among law enforcement agencies at national and regional levels”.
Madam Nkrumah mentioned that in order to address some of these challenges, the ECOWAS Commission and INTERPOL, with funding from the European Union, launched the West African Police Information
System (WAPIS) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, during the General Assembly Meeting of the West Africa Police Chiefs’ Committee (WAPCCO) in September 2012.
The objective of the WAPIS Program is to enhance the capacities of West African countries to fight organized crime and terrorism through an electronic information-sharing system at national, regional, and international levels.
She thanked the government and Liberian authorities for their political commitment to the program. Liberia was one of the first countries to sign a Memorandum Of Understanding on WAPIS implementation with Interpol, and this can’t be achieved without the involvement of Citizens throughout the Country.
“DACORE will play an important role in the implementation of the program in Liberia and provide a database for sharing information that goes to the heart of our collective security and fights against crime and criminality”.
The support of Interpol and the targeted 25 law enforcement officers from the Liberia National Police, the Liberia Immigration Service, and the commitment of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency saw the learning session of these DACORE.
She at the same time recommended to the Liberian authorities the urgent need to operationalize the DACORE by fast-tracking the inputting of criminal data.
“The DACORE staff are encouraged to demonstrate responsibility, diligence, and confidentiality in performing their duties to ensure data quality in the systems”.
She said the only way the Program can be workable and sustainable is for Development partners like UNODC, UNDP, GIZ, and IOM to mobilize resources in support of member countries for the successful implementation of the WAPIS Program.
