Security services must be neutral in managing conflicts

Accra, April 1, GNA - Brigadier General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (Rtd) on=

Thursday called on the security services to be neutral and display professionalism when maintaining law and order in conflict prone areas. "Our nation today is faced with increasing chieftaincy disputes everywhere and security services find themselves caught up in these dispu= tes struggling to maintain law and order," he said. Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah made the call at the launch of the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the Ghana Military Academy. The celebration is on the theme: "Beyond 50 years of excellence: - Turning out Elite Leaders for National and International Peace and Security."

He said the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) must be adaptable and responsiv= e to a multiplicity of roles and well equipped to deal with a variety of threats. "To generate and sustain a military force fit for the challenges of the next 50 years, we have to combine the essential components of leadership,=

training, better equipment and logistics support to produce a military fo= rce capable of playing the role of a peacemaker in ethnic conflict situations= ," he added. Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah noted that globalisation had changed the conflict profile in the world leading to an increase in intra-national conflicts over inter-national ones. "The breadth of tasks required to be undertaken go beyond the traditional internal security and peace support operations and would incl= ude humanitarian relief, confidence building operations, deterring traffickin= g in drugs and small arms, and full scale combat operations," he said. Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah said such conflicts required multi-lateral co-operation to handle them effectively. He advised that partisan politics and other negative tendencies shou= ld not be allowed to infiltrate the ranks of the GAF. "We need to inculcate new values into the young officers that come o= ut of the Military Academy, so that they eschew politics, ethnicity and othe= r divisive tendencies that may confront the military," he said. Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah noted that apart from the obsolete infrastructure, the Ghana Military Academy lacked modern Information, Communication and Technology equipment, which had become a prerequisite f= or institutions of learning. He called for the maintenance of high standards during the selection=

process at the academy to ensure that the best entrants were admitted. Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah said since the protection of human rights an= d human dignity had become the objectives of modern security delivery, a course on human security should be included in the curriculum of the Military Academy and other institutions in the Ghana Armed Forces. Lt. General Peter Augustine Blay, Chief of Defence Staff said the celebrations provided an opportunity for the academy to take stock of its=

past and chart a new path to confront future challenges. Activities lined up to mark the celebrations include a book launch, fun games, lecture, jubilee ball and awards night, panel discussion, graduati= on parade and non-denominational thanksgiving service.

The Ghana Military Academy was established on April 1, 1960 after yea= rs of reliance on foreign military academies to commission potential Ghanaia= n officers for the GAF. The academy grew out of the Regular Officers Special Training Schools= , which was established in 1953. Since its establishment, the academy has produced more than 3,000 Ghanaian officers now serving in various capacities in the armed forces a= nd the country as a whole. It has also trained cadets from sister African countries like Uganda,=

Liberia, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Benin and the Gambia. 1 April 10