Reconsider deployment of National Security – Government told

Government has been urged to give a deliberate rethink to the use of “operatives” of National Security Council in some operations.

According to civil society group Africa Centre for Security and Counter-Terrorism, the National Security is following a trend of acting “as if independent of the statutory state security agencies”.

The Centre issued a statement on Sunday in the wake of the recent raid at the offices of online portal firm Modern Ghana.

The raid on Thursday, June 27 saw two editors of the firm picked up by officers said to be from National Security.

The Secretariat has since justified the raid, claiming the firm was indulged in the hacking of competitors’ websites, among other cybercrimes.

But the Africa Centre for Security and Counter-Terrorism maintains that “the unnecessary unpredictability in the country’s security architecture” could trigger a deterioration of public confidence in the state security agencies, particularly the Ghana Police Service.

It said since the situation appears to be degenerating into unregulated policing skills, some persons would begin to police their own security.

There could also be a perceptual divide between the government and the statutory state security establishment “and undermine intelligence gathering,” the statement said.

It further stated that rogue elements like armed robbers and kidnappers could act as operatives of the National Security in clear deceit of unsuspecting public.

It said the international community could also enlist Ghana as one of the countries “that consistently show unpredictability in their internal security architecture and people safety”.

The Centre, therefore, urged government to rethink the trend and rather support “the human rights community in the country to help to civic-educate the general public about the full extent to which arrest with and/or without court-issued warrants can be undertaken in reference to governing authorities, including ministers”.