Ambrose Dery – Minister of Interior
The Minister for the Interior, Ambrose Dery, has inaugurated an eight-member committee to investigate the recent clashes in Tamale between some police personnel and soldiers serving under the Ghana Armed Forces.
The committee is composed of four officials of the Ghana Armed Forces namely Air Commodore AA Appiah, Colonel Amponsah, CWO Barker Ramous and Brigadier General Kwame Oppong-Kyekyeku.
Three police officers, namely DCOP D. Akrofi Asiedu (rtd), Chief Supt. Firmin Azitariga, and Victoria Esiaduwaa, are part of the committee.
It would be recalled that on Wednesday, May 16, 2018, there were reports of clashes between personnel of the Ghana Police Service and soldiers serving under the Ghana Armed Forces.
Soldiers descended on police officers in the Northern regional capital, Tamale, after one of their own had been beaten.
At the inauguration on Friday, June 22, 2018, in Accra, Mr Dery described the clashes as “unfortunate incident.”
He outlined the terms of reference of the committee as among other things “to investigate the immediate and remote causes of the clashes between the police and the military in Tamale on 16th May, 2018.”
He stated that the committee is to also “investigate the causes of any other police/military clashes that have occurred within the past five years – any actions taken and lessons learnt.”
He said the committee would identify the effects of such clashes on the relationship between the police and the military.
Again, the minister noted that the committee is also “to make appropriate recommendations for police/military collaboration/co-operation to avert such clashes in future as well as recommendations to improve police/military relationship and enhance “camaraderie” spirit between the two services.”
He told members of the committee that “you are expected to come out with appropriate recommendations beyond the existing protocols that will bring about effective police/military collaboration and strengthen the camaraderie spirit between the police and the military in Ghana.”
BY Melvin Tarlue & Naki Odonkor