When The Leviathan Wears Party Colours – A Security And Constitutional Analysis Of Partisan Abuse Of State Power In Ghana

1. In democratic evolution, few things are as corrosive as the capture of state security apparatus by partisan interests. Ghana, long heralded as the torchbearer of democratic resilience in Africa, now finds itself dancing perilously close to a slippery slope where state security institutions are used not as shields for the republic but as spears for political retribution. When security is manipulated not for the people but against them, the very soul of democracy trembles.

2. This specter of political witch-hunting, where opposition figures or dissenting voices are hunted down under the guise of national security, is not only a betrayal of the constitutional order but a betrayal of the very foundation upon which our 4th Republic was built. The framers of the 1992 Constitution were clear: sovereignty resides in the people. The state, therefore, exists to protect liberties—not crush them beneath the boots of political convenience.

3. Under Article 12 of the 1992 Constitution, the fundamental human rights and freedoms enshrined are inviolable and must be respected and upheld by all arms of government, including the executive. Yet, in recent times, we have witnessed a systemic erosion of these rights where citizens—especially those critical of the ruling regime—are subjected to arbitrary arrests, unlawful detentions, or stealth operations that resemble authoritarian tactics more than democratic procedure

4. The National Security Act, 2020 (Act 1030), provides for a coordinated approach to national security operations, emphasizing professionalism, oversight, and respect for the rule of law. However, the use of operatives to trail, arrest or intimidate perceived opposition without following due process betrays the essence of this law. The act was not meant to be a political baton for suppressing dissent, but a mechanism for safeguarding national stability

5. Security experts like Dr. Kwesi Aning of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre** have persistently warned that partisan control of national security fuels instability. According to him, state security must remain neutral, and its perceived or actual weaponization undermines not just internal peace but investor confidence and regional diplomacy. For a country like Ghana, whose economy leans on external goodwill and FDI, this is economic suicide in slow motion.

6. The internal security implications are dire. Youth unemployment in Ghana hovers above 12%, with underemployment nearly doubling that. When political foot soldiers, instead of being equipped with skills and jobs, are handed 'security assignments' to intimidate rivals, the state not only creates militia tendencies but nourishes seeds of violent extremism. As seen in parts of the Sahel, such disenfranchisement is the oxygen for insurgency.

7. External security too is not insulated. Ghana’s participation in ECOWAS, ECOWAS protocols on democracy and good governance ( 2001) which Ghana is a party to and Africa charter on Human and people Right, especially article 9 ( freedom of expression) and article 11 ( freedom of assembly) and the UN peacekeeping missions is a mark of its democratic reputation. But if reports of partisan security harassment continue, Ghana may find itself diplomatically isolated or face conditional funding from international allies who hold human rights dear. The U.S. Leahy Laws, for instance, prohibit aid to foreign security units implicated in human rights abuses—a threat we must not ignore.

8. The manner in which state actors invite citizens for questioning must also come under scrutiny. The 1992 Constitution under Article 14 lays out the right to personal liberty and lawful arrest. It demands transparency, reasonableness, and recourse. The “Rambo-style” arrests in the wee hours, the denial of legal counsel, and the public shaming of suspects—often before any charge—is antithetical to the spirit of justice. It is legal savagery masquerading as national security.

9. The constitution and statutes are clear: Where criminal suspicion exists, due process must be followed. Section 10 of Act 1030 requires intelligence operations to be governed by legality and ethics. Why then are citizens being hounded without warrants, journalists threatened for exposing corruption, or critics monitored with spy-tech originally procured for terrorism deterrence?

10. History offers painful lessons. From Mobutu’s Zaire to Gaddafi’s Libya, regimes that turned security into political tools collapsed under the weight of public fury. Ghana must not walk that same path. Political power is ephemeral, but institutions endure. Leaders must ask themselves: will this abuse outlive our term and haunt our legacy?

11. To build durable peace, Ghana must invest not in spying on its own people but in lifting them out of poverty. Real national security lies in economic inclusion, job creation, access to education, and good governance. No amount of arrests can secure a nation where the youth see no future. Even the armed forces cannot contain the rage of hopelessness indefinitely.

12. Civil society, clergy, traditional leaders, and the Ghana Bar Association must rise. Silence in the face of creeping authoritarianism is complicity. Today it is the opposition being harassed, tomorrow it may be the very enforcers of today’s abuse. Injustice has no fixed address—it travels.

13. The judiciary too must be fearless. It must remain the last line of defense against executive overreach. Recent judicial pronouncements on unlawful detentions are commendable, but the bench must go further to sanction those who weaponize the state. Judges must not only interpret the law but protect the Republic.

14. We must not allow partisan foot soldiers to be weaponized under the guise of “security appointments.” They are citizens first before party agents. The promise to employ them must be tied to sustainable jobs, not clandestine assignments that erode public trust and invite reprisal when power shifts. Political patronage must not be the fuel of our national intelligence system.

Ghana’s democratic investment is too precious to gamble with. If the state becomes the hunter and the citizen the hunted, we will have built an expensive façade of democracy over the rotting carcass of constitutionalism. Let the national security apparatus return to its true mandate—neutral, professional, and accountable. Let political parties win power by policy, not by the power of the barrel cloaked in party colors. The Republic deserves better—and history is watching.

By; ZAKARI GUA JNR, ( Scorpio 🦂 🦂 )
SECURITY AND JUSTICE ADVOCATE /Pol
icy Analyst on Internal Security And Constitutional Affairs.