[ 2016-11-29 ]

Stop intimidating Ghanaians - Hackman tells CDS
A former Interior Minister in the erstwhile Kufuor
administration, Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, has
described as intimidating, the recent statement
from the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshall
Michael Samson Oje, announcing the intention of
the military to deal brutally with trouble makers
on December 7.

According to Air Marshall Samson Oje, the military
will take tough action against people planning to
cause mayhem during this year’s election,
stressing that the military are ready and prepared
to “deal ruthlessly with anyone who causes any
kind of trouble during the election period.”

But Mr Owusu-Agyeman believes the threatening
statement from the CDS is unhelpful in a
democratic country such as Ghana, observing that
it constitutes a subtle attempt to scare aware
voters on the day of elections.

“I want to tell the Chief of Defence staff to
stop intimidating us because we will not be
intimidated. I am telling everyone to go and vote
on December 7. Everyone should go about their
duties because what the CDS said is neither here
nor there. Nobody is going to deal with anybody
ruthlessly, and we should just do what the law
requires,” he stated.

Mr Owusu-Agyemang told the Daily Statesman that
the job of the military is to protect the country
against external aggression, and not to intimidate
the people or meddle in political matters,
especially as the electorates prepare to exercise
their franchise on December 7.

“What he must realise is that no one is creating
trouble and besides that the job of the military
is to protect the country against external
aggression not to intimidate the people. What he
(CDS) is doing is tantamount to interfering in the
system because people in developing countries
always associate the movement of the armed forces
with governmental functions,” he said.

Mr Owusu-Agyemang, also a former Member of
Parliament for New Juaben North in the Eastern
Region, added: “it is completely out of order,
unheard of, never happened in this country for the
Chief of Staff to issue such statements or
threaten people.”

Describing his posture as unacceptable, Mr
Owusu-Agyemang explained that it was rather the
CDS who was giving the citizenry the bad
impression that there was going to be violence on
the Election Day. “I can say it on authority
that what he has done is completely unbecoming of
a CDS. It has never happened before. I take
exception to that,” he said.

Mr Owusu-Agyemang regretted that fact that the
body language of the CDS, as well that of some of
the other security heads, leaves a lot to be
desired, stressing that the confidence people have
in the security services, especially with regards
to their neutrality, is nothing worth writing home
about at the moment.

Source - The New Statesman

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