The Defence and Interior Committee of Parliament, together with the Defence Ministry and the Military High Command, will visit the Ashaiman Municipality next Thursday to engage residents over the recent clash between civilians and the military.
Last Tuesday, the Ghana Armed Forces’ (GAF) carried out an operation in Ashaiman following the killing of a 21-year-old soldier, Sherrif Imoro. The operation saw the brutalisation of residents – mostly young men – by the military, which the GAF explained was sanctioned by the Military High Command.
In a statement issued Wednesday, March 8, 2023, the GAF stated that the motive was not to avenge the killing of the soldier but to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous crime.
“During the course of the swoop, the personnel seized 29 slabs and 57 mini slabs of suspected indian hemp and amnesia, among other forms of the narcotics,” the statement from the GAF signed by Brigadier General E. Aggrey-Quashie, Director-General of Public Relations of the GAF, said.
But speaking with the media in Parliament, Chairperson of the Defense and Interior Committee, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Ken Ohene Agyapong, expressed the committee’s sympathy to affected persons and the military for their loss.
He said the committee met with the Ministry of Defence and the Military High Command and reached a decision not to make a statement on the floor until they had visited the scene.
“On behalf of the committees, we would like to sympathise with the young soldier’s family and also sympathise with the affected victims who were innocently beaten.
“We all have to admit, as human beings, that there were excesses; and therefore, we sympathise with the people of Ashaiman. At the same time, we sympathise with the Ghana Armed Forces for our young men taking the law into their own hands. Our mission is to ensure we have peace in this country,” Mr. Agyapong said.
Minister for Defence and Interior and MP for Bimbila, Dominic Nitiwul, who was also present at the committee’s engagement with the media, implored the citizenry to always accord people in uniform with respect.
“We are shaping up a country and we are going to have some of these regrettable incidents. But I still appeal to the people of Ghana to be very respectful of people in uniform; it will help all of us. We want a peaceful country,” he appealed.
