Kofi Amankwa-Manu, the deputy minister of defence has emphasised the need for a collective effort from all Ghanaians in tackling the menace of terrorism in Ghana,
The West Africa Centre for Counter-Extremism (WACCE) had already warned of possible terrorist attacks in Ghana.
Talking to Kofi Abotsi on TownHall Talk on Friday (20 May) Amankwa-Manu advised the public to report any suspicious character or actions to security agencies to help avert any attack by terrorists.
“So if I in this room see somebody here new, and his behaviour is out of the normal or the norm, the first thing a Ghanaian, a citizen or anybody at all must do is that, first of all report to the police or any security agency at all, it is so important.
“When I say any security agency at all, it doesn’t necessarily mean the army or the police, if you happen to meet immigration, make a report, if you happen to meet a prison officer, make a report because they are all part of what we are doing to nip this in the bud. So, the first thing you have to do is make a report and then they will also do the needful.”
“For I went to a banking hall about two days ago and then there was an empty chair but there was something in the chair and it was a black polythene bag, immediately I saw that I went straight into the banking officer and I said, ‘who owns that,’ immediately she called the security officer and said ‘who left that thing there, make sure it is not there,’ and then a lady came and said ‘oh this belongs to me,'” Amankwa-Manu said.
Amankwa-Manu, however, gave assurance to the public that measures are being rolled out to safeguard the peace and security of the country.
Listen to Kofi Amankwa-Manu in the attached audio below:
Meanwhile, security analyst, Adib Saani has urged the government to take awareness creation against terrorist activities seriously.
According to Saani, terrorist groups might use the various chieftaincy disputes in Ghana to establish their base or perpetrate their extremist activities.
He added that the government must prioritise and exert effort in solving the many chieftaincy disputes across the country, especially the never-ending Bawku conflict.
Speaking to Beatrice Adu on The Big Bulletin on Tuesday (10 May), Saani said, “it’s a complicated situation and I’ve realised that a lot of governments that came even before this present administration always would wish to manage it [Bawku conflict] until they leave office. But I think we need that type of assertiveness used by this current administration in dealing with the Dagbon issue equally applied to the Bawku violence.”
Creating awareness
Saani added that “recently I received a friend from Kenya, I went to the mall with him and he was shocked that we could go in, do all our shopping, and come out without being screened. The only places you see persons screened are the “big” hotels in Accra, beyond that, go to potential targets and nobody screens anybody.”
“So, we need to create that awareness and we need the government to be much more connected in that regard so everybody will be part of that process.”
Chieftaincy disputes
Saani said that “another thing to look at is the plethora of chieftaincy disputes we have in the country because these terrorists may take advantage of these sort of disputes and establish a foot-hole in Ghana. This is in the wake of a report presented to the UN Security Council earlier this year that points to a terrorist warehouse in Ghana, Togo and Benin. So, obviously, the threat is big,” he said.
West Africa records 840 terrorist attacks in four months
Meanwhile, Ghana’s defence minister Dominic Nitiwul earlier said that at least 840 terrorist attacks were recorded in the first quarter of this year, resulting in 2,482 casualties.
Speaking at an extraordinary meeting of the ECOWAS Committee of chiefs of defence staff in Accra on Thursday (5 May), Nitiwul said the development is worrying and must be addressed.
“As you are well aware, the activities of violent extremist organisations, terrorist armed groups and transnational organised criminal networks have increased in the sub-region, despite the current national and regional efforts to combat the trend,” Nitiwul said.
“The sub-region is saddled with complex transnational crimes committed both in the physical and cyber domains. Terrorists’ activities have assumed cross border dimensions with far-reaching implications for civil societies, regional security and global peace and development,” he added.
“Indeed, by the end of the first quarter of this year 2022 lone, 840 attacks have already resulted in 2,482 casualties.”
Fred Dzakpata
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