Bright Ernest Ankomea and his interpreter before the Commission
A NATIONAL Security operative who was on duty on the day of the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency by-election shooting incident, Bright Ernest Ankomea, also known as “double” is testifying in the Twi language before the Justice Emile Short Commission of Inquiry.
This is because the man who claims he is stationed at the Kotoka International Airport through which thousands of English speaking travelers arrive in the country, cannot speak English.
It is unclear how he communicates with air travelers at the airport who speak English.
Appearing before the Justice Short Commission on Tuesday, March 5, 2019, he came forward with an interpreter, Jennifer Nana Gatsu, and testified in Twi.
He told the Commission that he was recruited into national security in 2017, vetted and went through training for a period of three weeks in weapon handling, map reading, crowd handling, among others.
He dismissed claims by Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram Sam George that he was part of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) militia group, Invincible Forces.
Asked whether he was part of the group, he responded “no, I am not part of the Invincible Forces. I am stationed at the Kotoka International Airport.”
Prior to his recruitment into the National Security, he said, he was a mobile phone vendor at a Circle, a suburb of Accra.
Asked why he was at Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency on that day, January 31, 2019 and not the Airport where he had been stationed, he said they had a call a night to the election to prepare for patrol the next day.
He states that even though he was stationed at airport, he and other national security operatives were called normally to leave their posts and go other operations, noting that since 2017, he had been called twice.
He told the Commission that there were three warning shots from the crowd, with stones and water thrown at him.
According to him, there was only one warning shot from his colleagues of national security.
He said it was Commander of the SWAT Team of National Security, DSP Samuel Azugu who gave the police element within the national security the instruction to fire a warning shot when he arrived at where the crowd.
BY Melvin Tarlue