Release from GAF on military brutalities in Ashaiman wasn’t thought through – Prof. Aning

Prof. Kwesi Aning

Director in charge of Faculty of Academic Affairs & Research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Prof. Kwesi Aning has opined that he believes the press release from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) on the military brutalisation of residents in Ashaiman was hastily put together.

According to the Security Expert, the release was simply not thought through, adding that Parliament must take charge of the matter and ensure that those responsible for brutalising Ashaiman residents are not made to go scot-free.

“The bigger challenge in the failure is that Parliament has not spoken, and the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Interior, with a deputy who was a former personnel from the Ghana Police Service, ought to show leadership and that leadership is lacking.

“The Deputy Defence Minister, as I have said earlier, has shown political maturity and humility by saying, look, there were some unfortunate excesses but it is Parliament, particularly the Committee on Defence and Interior, that needs to invite the people who did the planning to come and answer some tough questions and to reassure the public post that conversation that we have learned these lessons, those who carried out the excesses will also be dealt with,” Prof. Kwesi Aning said.

The security expert continued, “the Military tells us that it was an intelligence-led operation or that they used intelligence and were targeted. I think the series of explanatory statements coming from the army itself have been unfortunate. When you read the press release carefully and you do a discourse analysis of the release, it was hastily put together, it wasn’t thought through and undermines this credible and creditable institution.”

Military personnel earlier this week stormed Ashaiman to carry out what it described as an intelligence-led operation to fish out the killers of a young soldier.

In the execution of the operations, 184 residents were arrested with several people beaten up by the military officers.

On the back of public backlash and condemnation from various organisations, the Ghana Armed Forces in a release said the operation was sanctioned but not focused on avenging the deceased soldier.