The Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil has said the responses given by the security ministers and officers from the Ghana Police Service at the Ayawaso by-election violence Commission of Inquiry, give indications that there is a breakdown in the command and control of the Police Service.
Speaking on Joy FM’s news analysis programme “NewsFileâ€, Kofi Bentil said per the responses, there is a need for Ghanaians to worry because the Police service as the law enforcing agency has a coordination gap in the service.
His comment comes on the back of statements made by the Interior Minister, Ambrose Derry and DCOP Alex Mensah, in connection to Ayawaso by-election violence, that the Police Service has no knowledge about the masked security men and the vehicles used by the supposed National Security operatives.
But the Minister of State in charge of National Security, Bryan Acheampong said these are men deployed by his outfit.
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Further, into the works of the Ayawaso Commission, DSP George Asare who heads the East Legon District police said, although the exercise was within his jurisdiction, another police officer was brought in to handle the exercise.
This officer, Chief Supt Kwasi Ofori, was his junior in the service and was in charge of operations on that fateful day, January 31.
At least 15 persons were hospitalised, some with gunshot injuries as a routine by-election was marred with political violence.
Expressing his views on the work and the emerging issues from the commission, Kofi Bentil said the way issues of these men, men who claim to work at the national security, are handled makes it difficult for citizens to report them if they are not doing the right things.
“We have created a character where when we see men like that we believe they are part of our security system and that's dangerous.â€
He added that with police service not knowing exactly the security arrangements for the elections and briefing the men on the grounds adequately shows a clear breakdown in their works.
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