Bryan Acheampong must resign – Former Chief of Staff demands

Former Chief of Staff under the erstwhile President Rawlings, Nana Ato Dadzie has reiterated calls for the resignation of Mr Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of State in-charge of National Security over the violence caused by masked security persons deployed to Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election grounds.

According to Mr Dadzie, on the basis of Mr. Acheampong’s “admitted violation of Article 526 of the Security and Intelligence act, 1996 and his direction of the assault during the by-election under that guise, he must immediately resign his office or the president must demand his resignation.”

He stated emphatically that, the National Security Council, under the laws of the country has no power to move troops neither does it have the power to “operationalize a paramilitary force.”

“Article 85 of our constitution is absolute and it prohibits the formation of any security agency except those set up by law…so when Mr Bryan says that “we moved our people there”, whose people? He questioned.

Mr. Ato Dadzie is just one of the many actors who have backed such calls, the NDC’s Member of Parliament for Builsa South Dr Clement Apaak, the Member of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, Mr Sam George, who was assaulted in the course of the violence, are some legislators who have vehemently called for the resignation of the three security chiefs in the country - The Inspector General of Police, David Asante Apeatu, Mr. Kan Dapaah, the National Security Minister and Mr. Bryan Acheampng, the Minister of State in-charge of National Security.

Bryan Acheampong’s response

Meanwhile, Mr Bryan Acheampong, has on several accounts denied personally deploying the heavily-armed and masked national security operatives who opened fire on some 16 members of the opposition NDC during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election two weeks ago.

According to him, the security operatives were deployed by the office of national security and he was not even available at the time to have ordered the deployment.

“I have done three interviews on radio, and at all times, I used third-person pronouns. I never said I, and that is something that I am battling with … I have never said anywhere in the three interviews that I granted… I, at all times, mentioned the Ministry of National Security or the national security or we, I never said I have deployed men,” Mr Acheampong insisted on the first day of the sitting of the Commission of Inquiry tasked by the president to probe the matter at the Osu Castle in Accra on Thursday, 14 February 2018.

He continued: “I am a minister of state in a ministry and if my Director of Operations tells me that they have deployed men, I am part of it, but I did not give the order that they should [deploy the masked men], that is why I used the words ‘we have’ because I know that it is my ministry that has deployed the men”.