…Akufo-Addo’s Ex-Aide-De-Camp lies in wait
In a surprising twist, The Herald, has uncovered potential changes in the leadership of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), hinting at Chief of Staff (CDS) Seth Amoama’s imminent retirement, but his successor, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) or the Army Commander, Major General Thomas Oppong-Peprah, is refusing to take the position.
This is despite a consistent trend noted by The Herald that Chief of Army Staff occupants, vacate their roles upon completing their mandatory three-year terms.
Major General Oppong-Peprah’s appointment to the position by President Akufo-Addo replacing Major General William Azure Ayamdo was announced on February 12, 2020 and took effect from February 18, 2020, meaning next month, he would be four years as Army Commander.
Notably, Major Generals Clayton Boanuba Yaache, Joseph Narh Adinkra, Samuel Odotei, William Azure Ayamdo, and Richard Opoku Adusei, were promptly replaced upon reaching their fixed terms.
However, an anomaly emerged with Major General Oppong-Peprah, whose term officially ended on February 18, 2023, yet has remained in office for nearly four years, raising concerns among both current and former military officers. Some of whom, his seniors, had been sent out as Defense Attaché in Ghana’s Missions abroad to have him elevated to Army Commander.
Speculations surround the reasons for Oppong-Peprah’s prolonged stay. Some point to his marital ties to President Nana Akufo-Addo’s family, suggesting political influence, while others cite financial motives, highlighting substantial unaccounted-for funds flowing through the COAS office.
Adding to the intrigue is information available to The Herald, about a plot by the Akufo-Addo-led government’s succession plan for Major General Oppong-Peprah’s replacement.
Major General Bismark Kwasi Onwona, formerly the Aide de Camp of President Akufo-Addo and currently serving as the Commandant of the GAF Command and Staff College, is strongly considered as the next Chief of Army Staff, but Oppong-Peprah, refusing to be CDS, meaning the changes would not happen, so everything stays same, especially the top brass of the military.
These developments, have cast the Ghana Armed Forces into the spotlight, raising questions about the intersection of military leadership, political connections, and financial interests.
The potential change in command, elicits anticipation and concerns within the military and the public, particularly in an election year with much at stake.
The military’s involvement in civil matters, has also raised concerns, with soldiers seen participating in Galamsey activities, suppressing protests, and engaging in actions that have resulted in casualties.
The military has recently been out and about in civil life raising concerns, especially among governance experts.
Soldiers have several times been seen involved in Galamsey activities either protecting mines owned by private companies or those owned by senior military officers who are in partnership with private companies.
One such illegal operation led to the murder of Major Maxwell Adam Mahama at Denkyira Obuasi in the Central Region on May 29, 2017.
At Ejura in the Ashanti Region, it was used to coil a protest by the residents following the death of one Ibrahim Mohammed alias “Kaaka”, an NPP activist who had turned a hard critic of the Akufo-Addo government.
Two people were killed when a combined team of soldiers and police shot into the protesters. Six were left permanently injured.
Ashaiman in the Greater Region, was turned into a war zone when heavily armed soldiers were deployed with tanks, helicopters and vehicles to terrorize residents over a young soldier’s sex life which had gone bad with him being killed by a jealous and estranged lover.
At Dome Faase in the Obom Domeabra Municipality in the Greater Region, it was used to crush protests by poor rural farmers who were angry at how their farmlands were being taken away from the estate developers with the connivance of senior military officers.
Young Ghanaian soldiers were deployed to the Faase town to serve as land guards for the estate companies and their senior military officers in a purely private profit-making partnership.
Just like Ashaiman, heavily armed soldiers were sent to beat up the residents who wanted the soldiers who prevented them from having access to their lands. Two residents lost their lives at the hands of their invading soldiers.
In the 2020 elections, out of the 8 people who were killed, six of them were believed to have been shot down by soldiers at Techiman North during the counting of the ballot papers for the Parliamentary election. There were videos of residents being fired upon by armed police and military men but there has not been any conclusive investigation in the matter.
The Herald, will continue to monitor the situation in the military and provide updates as the story unfolds.
