Flt Lt J.J Rawlings: The Founding Father of Ghana Armed Robbery, Inc. (G.A.R.I)

Nana Akwasi Twumasi

The escalation of armed robbery in our country is grossly chipping away at the roots of our democracy; therefore, it warrants serious discourse on the part of the electorate as we head into the general elections. Ghanaians both in the mainland and Diaspora are keenly aware — either through personal experience or by word-of-mouth — of the disturbing trend of this vice in our country. Hardworking Ghanaians sleep with one eye open just to protect their lives and meager properties. Ghanaians abroad are scared to relocate to or vacation in the country of their birth, because they become easy targets to these hardened criminals. Even the affluent, in a futile attempt to protect themselves, have put up expensive, architecturally detailed, and ostentatiously manicured mansions with far too many burglar-proofs that give them the look of prison cells rather than places of abode. Well, not to put too fine a point on it, I don’t think I possess the authorial and lingual dexterities to precisely convey to anyone the heartrending nature of this menace that’s sweeping through our country; it borders on ad nauseum, not to mention noogenic neurosis. Against this backdrop, it’s understandable why my fellow citizens express their frustrations with the NPP administration anytime the subject of armed robbery is broached. Insults have been heaped on the doorsteps of President Kufour for not doing enough to contain these criminals; believe it or not, I am on that bandwagon. But to all the faultfinding captious critics out there who are quick to blame the NPP administration for all the wrongdoings under the sun, it is significant, in light of the subject under discussion, to fish out the real culprit who is responsible for the genesis of this menace that has cost our country so many lives, and others, so much pain.

The origin of most of the problems that we are wrestling with today, as a nation, can be traced to the former administration. Yes, Rawlings and his NDC party account for a big chunk of Ghana’s problems. Rawlings’ twenty-year tenure can be summed up thusly: the most ruthless, coldhearted, bloodthirsty, problem-creating bastard to ever ascend onto the throne of the presidency of our country. As a person with enormous appetite for power, Rawlings ushered in a period of problem-creating revolution by, first of all, ensuring that all the Akans with prominent positions in the military were either killed or replaced with his minions and political cronies. Secondly, as part of his truculent policies, Rawlings created militia groups in addition to his Ewe-dominated army. These militia groups were armed to the teeth with the expressed purpose of keeping the citizenry “in check” in accordance with Rawlings’ tenets of military dictatorship. It is noteworthy to mention that the personnel that made up these paramilitary groups, unlike the military and the police, were not required to return their guns to a centralized armory under lock and key. Thus, the guns they used at “work” were the same ones they carried home. Moreover, during his tenure, Rawlings established the 64th battalion—another wing of his paramilitary apparatus that was made up of elite commandos who were specially trained in Cuba. This unit worked as Rawlings’ personal bodyguard, and also, operated in covert operations under the direct command of Rawlings. This group, like the former, didn’t return their guns to a centralized armory at the end of the day. Further, when the constitution was drafted in 1992 that allowed Rawlings to run for the presidency as a civilian, he unleashed more guns into the hands of his trusted followers to keep the then opposition party — that is, the NPP — at bay. Do we recall the number of people who died at the hands of Rawlings’ paramilitary groups during the Kume Preko demonstration of the mid-90s? When Rawlings left office in 2000, there was/is no evidence to suggest that he disarmed these paramilitary units. By not doing so, he left our streets flooded with guns, which would later be used to rob, and in some instances, kill, hardworking Ghanaians for their hard-earned Pesewas. Succinctly put, these armed robbers roaming our streets today are nothing more than the remnants of Rawlings’ 20-year rule. The story is worsened by the fact that Nigerians and people of other nationalities have joined the “party,” with the only requirement being that one needs a gun and be on Ghana soil to strike it rich.

Rawlings drools with excitement when Ghanaians express their disappointment in the present administration over the issue of armed robbery. Remember Ataa Ayi’s story? G.A.R.I is Rawlings’ creation purported to sow discord between Ghanaians and the NPP administration. So far, it appears this ploy is working. However, what Rawlings and his NDC party will not make known to the electorate is that they are responsible for putting guns into the hands of the paramilitary/military personnel that originated this vice. For those of us who’re blessed with eidetic memory, we should recall that one of the first major armed robberies in the country, dubbed the Gold Bullion Robbery, was perpetrated by a number of military personnel in 1999; this occurred under Rawlings’ watch, not Kufour’s. As the average Ghanaian remains sleepless at night, Rawlings laughs for being successful at undermining the NPP administration. He would go to any extent to tacitly protect G.A.R.I as any astute person who owned a company would do. As an example, he vehemently objected Akufo Addo’s proposal to double the size of the police force on the ground that Ghanaians would be intimidated by excessive Police presence. I can almost hear some of you ask, “How dumb could he be?” It’s mindboggling for Rawlings to rationalize that Ghanaians, who are yearning for Police presence because of armed robbers, would be intimidated by Police presence. Folks, this is pure and unadulterated lunacy!

Sadly, Kufour’s administration, instead of being proactive in its fight against these criminals, seems to have been bogged down by the economy and other issues. Meanwhile, Rawlings sings to the masses that he is the one who is capable of solving all the violence and crime in our country. In the past few weeks, he assembled his former military capos at his residence to “discuss how best they can also contribute in solving the worsening security situation in the country, especially in the north,” according to the Ghanaian Chronicles. I truly believe that the reason for this meeting of dangerous minds, as referenced above, is plain and simple gobbledygook. If Rawlings’ intention was truly to help the current administration quell the violence in the country, why did he and his ex-capos not meet with NPP security personnel instead? Anyway, why does he believe he can help solve the violence in the country? Unless, may be, he wants to tell us what we already know, that he is the root cause of all the violence in the country and, as a result, he will be the best person to address it. In any case, this meeting, in my opinion, was uncalled for. Frankly, I am of the disposition that any high-profile meeting, which conflicts with the unmistakable interest of the country, as is the case here, is flagrantly, palpably, and definitely unwarranted. The NDC disciples’ evocation that this meeting did not have any hidden agenda simply because the media was present is a purely ad hominem argument to mislead the public. Truth be told, Rawlings may be working on a more sinister agenda than the public was led to believe. Coincidentally, Kufour and his NPP administration concur with me. They’ve banned Rawlings and his murdering thieves from visiting all military and police installations in the country. Given Rawlings’ tract record of staging coups, Ghanaians have every reason to doubt his real intention for this meeting. Rawlings has been crafty in all his dealings because, as a good psychiatric patient, he knows he’s being monitored by his psychiatrist (the NPP). Ghanaians need not worry; “we” are surveilling that idiot so closely that I can almost smell him. If Rawlings is stupid enough to stage another coup with the vestiges of his antiquated paramilitary apparatus, he would feel as if he’d walked into a gun fight with a stick. Ghanaians shouldn’t worry about that nutcase; “we” have him contained.

On the merit of the facts presented here, Ghanaians have every reason to be upset with Rawlings for creating the fertile ground on which the menace of armed robbery continues to thrive in our country. That said I would hold Kufour’s feet to the fire for not doing enough to curb this nuisance. These armed robbers, I believe, should be executed when they’re caught to serve as a deterrent to other wannabe thieves. After all, these hardened criminals rob and kill their victims if they have to, so why should we not endorse their execution? Folks, let’s play out a hypothetical scenario: If Rawlings happened to be our current president, and Kufour was the former president who had armed his followers to commit robbery, what would Rawlings do? Undoubtedly, he would execute all these criminals. The only caveat, in this case, is that he would do so to protect his neck and his cronies’, not Ghanaians. It’s a sad truth, but Kufour and his NPP administration haven’t done the bare minimum to even deserve an “F” grade. All hope is not lost though. Nana Akufo Addo has clearly articulated how he would address this issue if elected president. So far, we haven’t heard a word from Mills on this issue. Wonder why? If you haven’t figured this out by now, please read the article again!

The author also known as TROUBLE-MAKER can be reached via nanaakwasitwumasi@googlemail.com