President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
Deputy Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party(NPP) Kamal Deen, has refuted claims by the opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC) that the President condones lawlessness and vigilantism in the country.
He said this in an interview with Johnnie Hughes on the New Day show on TV3, Tuesday, May 18.
Mr Deen was reacting on the back of the claims by the Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress(NDC) Sammy Gyamfi alleging that President Akufo-Addo supports and condones lawlessness, hooliganism and vigilantism in the country, leading to the unwarranted sacking of the Ashanti Regional Security Coordinator DCOP Ayensu Opare Addo from his post.
He stated that “the man has his story to tell, the other side has their story to tell too, which is the National Security Set up. I have picked up information that, lawfully the man has been changed, someone was appointed since the 9th of April, he is the man who is supposed to be the current Security Coordinator, having received your letter from the 9th of April, you are supposed to at least leave office. The man boldly said, according to reports I have picked, which investigation is still ongoing but of course, this is very authentic. He boldly said that he will not answer to the calls of the letter and that he is not leaving that office. “He said he was waiting for the man who is supposed to take over from him to come before he leaves office. In fact, the information that is out there indicates that he has been invited by his authorities, then he refused to respond to such calls by the National Security set up, then of course, officially National Security sent people to inform him that, look you need to come to Accra. It is when the officers visited him, then he placed a call to the Police Command that he had been besieged by so-called hoodlums, which in fact is not true”.
When asked if the ruling government is comfortable with the resurgence of lawlessness and vigilantism in the country, he responded that “as ugly as they appear, an objective citizen with a great mind like myself and other people watching us, will condemn it. That is why I prefixed my submission this morning with the fact that we should have at the back of our minds that we are a growing democracy and whether we like it or we do not like it, such negative tendencies will actually be part of it. And when they come, let us condemn it, with all humility speak to it and of course, nip it in the bud. I am saying, the government of the day has not sat down, the vigilantism law he was alluding to, which government championed it?
“The Emile Short commission that he has alluded to, even recommending the prosecution of some individuals, which government set up the commission? The commission that was set up, Sammy Gyamfi and his likes ab initio said they were not even going to avail themselves to the commission, his party. These people, these are people who say that they are holier-than-thou, they are saints, they love peace, when the President was out of the country and the Acting President, the Vice President was asked to set up the commission they opposed it. Today you are having the recommendations of the commission as a Bible and running with it to the media to present it out there. The President is on record to have made a lot of comments, positive comments against some of these acts. The President I can say with all certainty, is against such lawlessness and fights it vehemently”.