Security Analyst, Emmanuel Kintu, has criticised the approach adopted by successive governments in tackling crime and insecurity in the country.
Speaking on Citi TV/ Citi FM’s The Big Issue, Mr. Kintu said attacks on citizens and other related crimes had increased due to the politicization of Ghana’s security system.
He said Ghana’s polarized system had created a situation where security officials were now taking orders from politicians instead of solely abiding by their code of ethics in discharging their duties.
“The Military is supposed to have its own command and control, but we have a democratic system where we have politicians being Chairmen of the Regional Security Councils and District Security Councils. I think that it is about time government sits up and make people pay for their actions.”
Mr. Kintu believes Ghana has to “move beyond politics and see crime as crime and punish people when they commit a crime,” in order to fully address insecurity in the country.
“What I am seeing in this country is that people are hiding behind politicians and politics and committing a lot of crimes.”
Mr. Kintu made these comments while sharing his thoughts on the mob attack on a social activist, Ibrahim Muhammed, alias Kaaka, and the recent disturbances in Ejura that led to the death of two persons with four others injured.
Some residents of Ejura staged a street protest over Kaaka’s killing, but were confronted by armed police and military personnel, leading to the death of two persons who were said to have been shot by some soldiers.
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, subsequently admitted requesting the presence of the military in Ejura as Chairman of the Regional Security Council (REGSEC).
Mr. Osei Mensah said he took that action based on intelligence he gathered a day before the protest that the protesters were going to burn the police station in the area.
The Minister’s explanation did not sit well with Mr. Kintu, who insisted that the Regional Minister erred by giving orders to the military.
“More or less, this civilian politician will give orders to a trained senior military officer and if you look at the security act, they were not trained to take orders from the politicians, so that is a dent on our democracy and as a country, we need to take a step back and look at how we can correct that anomaly.”
Many have expressed concerns about the use of the military in civil protests and situations since the Ejura incident occurred.
Others have called for an end to the practice, for the police to take charge to reduce or curb these excesses.
