Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa North, James Agalga, has expressed worry about President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s silence on the renewed Bawku crisis, the killing of a soldier in Ashaiman and its aftermath.
In the view of Mr. Agalga, the two developments were the most pressing security challenges the country faced in the past “few days” and for the President “to go mute on them should be a concern to Ghanaians.”
Taking his turn in Parliament to debate the contents of the SONA, Mr Agalga, a former Deputy Minister of Interior, advised President Akufo-Addo to address the nation on the two developments.
President Akufo-Addo in his address, a day after soldiers stormed and brutalized residents of Ashaiman, over the killing of a young military personnel; Sheriff Imoro, did not mention the incident and the Bawku crisis. Yet still, he touted his government’s investment in the security sector of the country.
Mr. James Agalga, the Ranking Member on the Defence and Interior Committee, however, claimed the President was duty-bound, to appraise Ghanaians on developments in Bawku and condemn the incident that happened in Ashaiman.
“As Commander-In-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, one would have expected that Mr. President would have told us the state of security in the country, before talking about procurement done under his watch, for the improvement of the delivery of the security services.
“The age-old Bawku crisis has escalated, there have been many killings. Many people have lost their lives and one would have expected that as Commander-In-Chief; the principal guarantor of the peace and security of the country, President Akufo-Addo, would have said something about the age-old renewed Bawku conflict.”
James Agalga
Mr. Agalga recalled that “we all witnessed what happened in Ashaiman, a day before the President delivered his address on the state of the nation”.
“The President should have at least consoled the family of the bereaved soldier and also express regret about the abuses of the rights of the people of Ashaiman by the soldiers. Mr. Speaker, that was unfortunate. The President simply did not live up to expectation, as Commander-In-Chief, I will admonish him to find space and address the nation on Bawku and Ashaiman.”
James Agalga
President’s Silence On Ashaiman Military Raid Wrong
However, the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), says the unwillingness of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to criticize the military for its invasion of Ashaiman after a soldier died, is wrong.
The Executive’s degrading silence over the violations of human rights endured by the defenseless residents, according to the centre, also constitutes a tacit endorsement.
The President, who also serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, has come under fire for his silence after military forces invaded the area with armoured vehicles and a helicopter and brutalized residents.
In a statement, CDD-Ghana tagged the military’s actions as “flagrantly unprofessional and savage,” and demanded that the President punish the officers responsible.
“The Executive branch must also be advised that failing to condemn and sanction the military officers implicated in this barbaric episode, is a slippery slope toward a generalized state of lawlessness and anarchy.
“The government’s tacit endorsement of this incident only goes to embolden military officers, to take matters into their own hands whenever they deem it necessary to do so.”
The Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana)
CDD-Ghana, highly appalled by the conduct of the military officers at Ashaiman, and further deeply dismayed by the revelation that the unprofessional conduct of the military personnel was sanctioned by the military hierarchy, seeks that the operations and conduct of the armed forces be controlled by the upper echelon.
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