I did not order soldiers to storm parliament – Dominic Nitiwul

Dominic Nitiwul, the Minister-designate for Defence has denied claims that he ordered some military officers to invade parliament on the night of the election of the Speaker for the eighth parliament.

Murtala Mohammed, Member of Parliament for Tamale Central in an interview said that he was a witness to Nitiwul’s call to the military to storm parliament.

“Dominic Nitiwul called the Military into the chamber, armed Military men. They were armed to the teeth and that is completely unacceptable. I was there when he was making the call, and I confronted him. I asked him whether he didn’t feel embarrassed about what he was doing… he may lie but I wasn’t the only person there… I have witnesses he made the call in the chamber.”

He further noted that: “Never in our history have we had armed military men deployed into the chamber. It was completely unacceptable, the Minister for Defence made that call; when he was making the call, I told him it wasn’t necessary because it will be a blur on the integrity of this House.”

When quizzed on this claim by his colleague MP, Dominic Nitiwul flatly rejected the story.

He said that though he sat close to his ‘close friend’ Murtala Mohammed, he did not have any such discussion with him.

Nitiwul said that at the time, he had no power to order military as the government’s mandate had ended.

“It is not a true story. I did not have the capacity to move the military, Murtala is my friend and he knows. I have not spoken to him for a long time. I didn’t go to any place. I only went to urinate and came back. I was sitting with him and the independent candidate. But the military like I said are the most professional”, he said.

He also declined to confirm or deny identity of the commander of the armed men after it was mentioned by Okudzeto Ablakwa.

“In the military I would advise unless it is very necessary, I will be wrong to be mentioning names of commanders and their actions. Colonel Punami is the head of the presidential protecting team at the jubilee house," he said.