You do not need a security expert to tell you that our security establishment is broken and archaic. For many years we have undermined the power and authority of all security agencies except the Ghana Armed Forces and politicians, for their selfish needs, will continue to undermine such state institutions.
To me, Kan Dapaah, the Minister of National Security, Ambrose Dery, the Minister of Interior and the Inspector General of Police David Asante Apeatu must be fired. The three have shown over the last two months, that they lack the requisite knowledge and skill to deal with any security threats to the country.
After members of the so-called Invincible and Delta Forces begun their looting and violent seizures and attacks, the three have failed to institute a proper security plan to ward off these criminal attacks. What they have done, is to make some arrests, albeit questionable, and seek to use that as a sign of victory in the fight against the activities of these goons. How do you grant bail to thirteen people, who attempted to lynch a regional security coordinator? It would have made more sense to provisionally charge them and seek to place them in remand by appearing before the court. The video showed more than twenty people openly justifying their criminal actions and majority are walking free. How can you deploy only twenty police officers, who were all not drawn from the Formed Police Unit, to guard the court in such a sensitive case?
There is a reason why only retired army Generals are selected for the position of National Security Minister or Advisor in most developed democracies. Security planning goes beyond the deployment of troops. To qualify as a National Security Minister, you should have acquired special knowledge in security and intelligence training and not just by reading books and deploying troops. The fact that Mr Dapaah served as a former Defense/Interior Minister doesn’t necessarily make him the best person for the job. There are emerging security threats which are sophisticated in nature and require a Security-trained person to decipher. Mr Dapaah for me does not qualify. He may be a good accountant and advocate against corruption but if his plan to fight these Forces(assuming he has a plan) has not yielded any results in months then why is he there?
Ambrose Dery is a fine lawyer and gentleman. He may have spoken out against these acts of violence but he hasn’t been vociferous enough and hasn’t been assertive enough in dealing with this menace. It has been the same cycle of holding press conferences whenever these attacks occur and nothing has changed with respect to strategies and achievable targets to the Police chiefs. It has been the usual fire fighting with laughable rhetorics and empty cautions. I don’t expect him to publicly tell us his plan to quell this new phase of terror but the fact that these activities keep occurring, at a higher crescendo almost every week shows his plan, if any, is not working. In two months state properties have been vandalised and some citizens have been brutalized and the threat of violence still abounds and our Interior Minister appears confused in the handling of this matter possibly due to the involvement in this crime by some of his party members.
David Asante Apeatu is our IGP and for me, he has done little or nothing against these goons. I know some arrests have been made but the delay in their investigations in most of the reported cases sends a wrong signal to the public. He has maintained and taken some bad decisions since becoming IGP. The Ashanti Region, due to its geographical location(almost at the center of Ghana) and its massive economic activities presents a different security threat than say the Central Region. For instance there are certain criminal activities which may occur frequently in Kumasi but not Cape Coast, that is, kidnapping, armed robbery, murder cases, political violence among others. The threat in the Ashanti Region require a more action-oriented commander who can gather credible intelligence and act accordingly. DCOP Ken Yeboah is not the man for the job. He is soft and unable to deal with violent crisis situations and his history in Tamale is clear on that. My interactions with colleague journalists in the Northern Region has reaffirmed my point that he barely makes any arrest in any political crime such as assault. Compare him to COP Kofi Boakye, who is seen as strict and action-oriented. DCOP Yeboah had intelligence on the possible attack on the regional security coordinator and he couldn’t send enough men to quell that attack. He had intelligence about this latest court attack and still couldn’t counter this attack. What is his business then as a commander if he can’t anticipate such attacks and act accordingly?
Still on the IGP, he needs to reshuffle COP Christian Tetteh-Yohuno as Director General Operations. The man is not cut out for the job, simple. I have covered demonstrations when he served as Accra Regional Commander and his operational strategies were always archaic. It was by luck that most of the AFAG and Let My Vote Count Demonstrations didn’t turn violent under his leadership. He is not assertive enough and does not appear to be in control of national operations. For what reason will you keep two of your best senior officers, COP Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, COP kofi Boakye, COP Frank Adu Poku as Director Generals, ICT , Research and Planning and Technical respectively when other key operational departments need their leadership.
The IGP must know, that being the topmost police officer goes beyond the purchase of vehicles, computers and weapons. it goes beyond receiving donations and creating more police departments. it requires deep thinking and modern strategies to fight crime. He hasn’t exhibited that exceptional character to warrant his stay as IGP. He keeps placing square pegs in round holes and is yet to make a key strategic decision to save us from these hoodlums. all we hear are police transfers and the receipt of donations for the last two months.
The president will do the usual. Summon the above three men to express his anger but he must go beyond them to fire them. He doesn’t have to wait for a life to be lost before showing them the exit. they have so far failed woefully and he should save his administration from further embarrassment by appointing new competent men. For crying out loud why can’t we have General J.B Danquah as a National Security Advisor? The President needs to act now before the security of the state is further threatened.
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