We do not have police, soldiers doing NPP’s bidding - Interior Minister

Mr Ambrose Dery, Minister for the Interior, on Monday scolded Mr Sammy Gyamfi, National Democratic Congress' (NDC) National Communications Officer, for threatening national security agencies with merciless treatment if his party wins the 2020 elections.

Mr Dery, at a press conference in Parliament House in Accra, urged the security officials and personnel to ignore the threats from the NDC's spokesperson and treat it with the deserving contempt.

Mr Gyamfi had claimed that some security officials were doing the bidding of the NPP, and cautioned that the next NDC Government would fish such officials and personnel out and deal with them mercilessly.

In the reported words of Mr Gyamfi, “The police officers and the military officers are making their career conterminous with that of President Akufo-Addo. The day President Akufo-Addo exits office will be the last day they will serve as policemen and military men and we will deal with them mercilessly.”

He is said to have described the Akufo-Addo led NPP Government as despotic and called the security officials as “unscrupulous” persons who abetted with the Government as agents of violence against innocent citizens.

But Mr Dery told the journalists that the Government respected people’s rights; and he did not find the stance of Mr Gyamfi to be reasonable.

“For anybody to threaten professionals who are employed, have their fundamental rights in consonance with the Constitution, that when they come to power they will relieve them of their positions, I do not find that to be a reasonable position,” Mr Dery said.

He added: “We do not have police or soldiers who are doing the bidding of the NPP. No, we don’t have that. What I know is that we’re dealing with a professional situation and that is what we respect.”

Mr Dery called for respect for the security agencies and cautioned the NDC that “if they think that they will come to power and throw people away, there is due process in this country.

“People will go where they have to go and defend themselves. But what I can assure you is that this government is not using security agencies for its parochial purposes.”