General News of Tuesday, 31 October 2023

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

We’ll summon Kan Dapaah to parliament over military brutality in Garu – Cletus Avoka

Clement Apaak, MP for Builsa South Constituency Clement Apaak, MP for Builsa South Constituency

A member of parliament's Interior and Defense Committee, Cletus Avoka, has indicated that the committee is determined to summon the Minister for National Security, Albert Kan Dapaah, to appear before the House to provide an explanation regarding the alleged brutality of residents in Garu in the Upper East Region, by some Ghana Armed Forces personnel.

Recent reports suggest that a group of military personnel carried out a dawn raid in Garu, during which they reportedly assaulted local residents.

The Ghana Armed Forces has defended the actions of their personnel, stating that the military operation was in response to an attack by irate youth in the area on national security operatives.

The Ministry of National Security, in an official statement, also refuted the claims by the residents, stating that the operation was a joint effort to seize weapons following an October 24 attack by a vigilante group in Garu.

However, Cletus Avoka, the Member of Parliament for Zebilla East, believes it is essential for the national security minister to address the matter before parliament.

"We will endeavour to make a statement on the floor of Parliament. We will request that Speaker Alban Bagbin invite the Minister of National Security, Kan Dapaah, to come and address the House. We will then appeal to the Speaker to establish a committee to investigate this. We had done this in Wa, when soldiers went on a rampage and beat up civilians just because a civilian stole a soldier's motorbike.

"We went to Wa to investigate it. When soldiers beat up several people in Ashaiman and they made them lay in water and gutters, we went there to investigate, we went to the area and conducted investigations," he told citinewsroom.com.

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NAY/AE