Don't glamourize coup makers - Obasanjo

Accra, Sept. 2, GNA - General Olusegun Obasanjo, Former Nigerian leader, has cautioned Africa countries against the glamourization of coup makers and called for drastic condemnation of any such unconstitutional takeovers of democratic governments.

He said such military adventurism was detrimental to any country's development and growth, saying, "If a military officer wants to govern, he should resign his commission and seek for political power democratically.

Gen. Obansanjo, who was speaking at the Ghana Military Academy (GMA) Golden Jubilee Panel Discussion on Wednesday in Accra, said "Any military coup is unacceptable and we must stop glamorizing their actions",

The event that was on the topic: "Turning out Quality Military Leaders in the 21st Century: A re-appraisal of leadership Training in the Ghana Armed Forces", formed part of activities marking the 50th anniversary of the GMA, at which some eminent academicians and military officers urged the retooling of that institution to make its training relevant in contemporary times.

The GMA has trained over 3,000 military officers, with a significant number of them, coming from other African countries, some of whom have excelled not only in their military carriers but in governance in their respective countries, including Gen. Obasanjo.

Dignitaries including the Defence Minister Lt. Gen Joseph Smith, the military high command, alumni of that institution, government functionaries, Parliamentarians, Diplomatic Corps, representatives of other security agencies, senior military officers, cross section of people from the civil stream attended the forum.

Gen. Obansanjo congratulated the GMA on that milestone, calling for a re-evaluation of the training needs of that institution and the overhauling of facilities to reflect changing trends in the defence arena.

He said the changing security environment necessitated that the military should not be rooted in the past, but to continually evolve with reviews to leadership training.

"The military has its ethics and principles but the challenges of the times demand that we also change because it will not auger well for any armed forces that is rooted in the past" said Gen. Obasanjo

He called for a pragmatic approach in training military leaders for the 21at century, insisting on the need to imbue in military officers the tenets of democracy and good governance.

Gen. Obansanjo said that all future programmes to train military leaders should be structured such that it could make an impact on the development nations.

Panelists at the forum called for the overhauling of the officer training programmes of the Ghana Military Academy (GMA) to reflect current trends in the global security sphere.

They argued that the interface between defence and development, coupled with the ever-changing security environment, demanded significant investment in military training and the constant evaluation of training needs to produce quality leadership for the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).

They also advocated the upgrading of the GMA to an undergraduate facility to make training multi-disciplinary to enhance the quality of materials churned from that institution, calling for constant dialogue between political and military leadership to enable the former appreciate the workings and requirements of the latter.

The climax of the celebration would be the Golden Jubilee Graduation Parade at the GMA parade grounds on September 3, 2010 and a non-denominational church service at the Burma hall on September 5, 2010.