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Wa, Ghana – Statistics from the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service in the Upper West Region show that cases of assault increased in the region in 2018.
The region in 2018 recorded 196 assault cases against 179 cases reported to the Unit in 2017.
Domestic stealing cases also increased in the region from 17 cases in 2017 to 27 cases in 2018.
Failure to provide cases which involves parents refusing to cater for their children increased from 62 cases to 71 cases in 2018.
Threat to death cases also increased from 35 cases to 44 cases in 2018 and causing Harm cases increased from 4 in 2017 to 2018.
Station Officer for the Upper West Regional DOVVSU Unit Inspector Niabi Stella made this known in an interview with this reporter on Thursday.
She also stated that rape cases reported to the Unit in 2018 showed an increase from six cases reported in 2017 to 15 cases in 2018.
“Abduction cases also reduced from 28 cases in 2017 to 10 cases in 2018”, she noted.
There was no increase in cases of defilement in the 2017 figure of 15.
Inspector Niabi Stella said in all, 450 cases were reported to the unit in 2018 against 452 cases reported to the unit in 2017.
Out of the cases reported to the Unit, sse said 79 cases were closed, twenty (20) sent to court and six persons were convicted. “However, 13 cases are awaiting trial whiles 381 cases are still under investigation”.
The Station Officer for DOVVSU entreated all in the region to volunteer information to the Unit to enable them get offenders prosecuted in court.
Throwing some more light on assault cases, Inspector Niabi Stella said whilst many of the complainants involved women who had been beaten up by their husbands or male partners, quite a number of men also reported being assaulted by their female partners.
She stated that some fathers have shunned their responsibilities and left the task of catering for their children on the women, many of whom have now become breadwinners of their families.
She noted that in the course of some men shirking their responsibilities, some children and their mothers rights have been automatically violated in the process.
By Savannahnewsonline.com/Mavis Okyere
