The Member of Parliament for Ashaiman, Ernest Norgbey, has disclosed that the remaining 34 residents of his constituency who were picked up by the military, have been released.
The military on Tuesday, March 7 besieged the Ashaiman township in an attempt to apprehend suspects involved in the murder of a military officer; Trooper Imoro Sheriff, and picked up 184 suspects in the dawn swoop.
The Ashaiman Member of Parliament in an interview, said intelligence he has picked, indicated that all the arrested suspects have been released and have re-united with their families.
“All of them have been released now, though we are receiving information that some families are saying that they have not seen their loved ones as of yesterday [March 9], but I am sure as they [the military] have released the 34, everybody should be able to reach home.”
Ernest Norgbey
The other 150 were released on Thursday, after spending a day in the custody of the military. The actions of the military were widely condemned but the Ghana Armed Forces in a statement, said the swoop was sanctioned by the Military High Command and aimed at fishing out criminals in the community.
Sadly, the mortal remains of Trooper Imoro Sheriff, the soldier, who was allegedly stabbed to death at Taifa, a suburb of Ashaiman, last Friday, was yesterday laid to rest at the Military Cemetery in Accra.
It was an emotional scene as officers and men of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), turned out in their numbers to pay their last respect to the 21-year-old soldier, who was brought to the 37 Military Hospital Mosque for the funeral ceremony. The National Chief Imam, Sheik Osman Nuhu Sharubutu, performed the final journey ceremony after Islamic rituals.
Salaries Of Soldiers, Police Officers Tripled
The Ministry of Defence, has revealed that the salaries of soldiers and police officers, have been tripled to enhance their standard of living.
The Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, contributing to the debate on the State of the Nation address by the President, said the government has made adequate investments in the security apparatus of the country over the years.
“Mr Speaker, for the Armed Forces in particular, the salaries of the armed forces have been more than tripled. It is the same thing with the police service and the same thing with the other security services because a hungry soldier, is an angry soldier. That is why it is important that our security services are well taken care of.”
Dominic Nitiwul
Meanwhile, the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu on the other hand, has urged Ghanaians never to vote for another hung Parliament in the future. The Bekwai MP, believes the situation has made the current legislature, less efficient as compared to the seventh Parliament.
He wants Ghanaians to vote massively for either the NPP or NDC in the 2024 general elections, to give one political party an overwhelming majority in the House.
“It is affecting governance generally, I am saying that next time, Ghanaians should vote more. If they want the NPP to be the Majority, they should give them more votes. If you want NDC to be the majority, give them more votes. This one is affecting governance very badly.
“The seventh Parliament, probably because of the numbers, passed the highest number of laws since 1993, we passed over 100 laws. This Parliament is our third year, but I doubt we have passed even 10 laws. The level of cooperation that I saw, is no longer there.”
Joseph Osei-Owusu
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