Retired Col. Festus Aboagye, a security analyst, has highlighted that a fundamental challenge facing Ghana’s military is the lack of democratic oversight.
He criticized the deployment of military personnel for tasks beyond their training and duties, which he believes compromises their effectiveness.
On July 1, Minister of Defense Dominic Nitiwul called on the military to maintain strict political neutrality during the upcoming December 2024 elections, emphasizing their duty to safeguard the nation’s integrity.
Speaking at a lecture titled “Reflection on Democratic Control over the Military: A Way Forward for Sustainability,” the minister stressed the importance of nonpartisanship within the armed forces.
In contrast, Col. Aboagye, speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on July 2, argued that there are currently inadequate democratic structures, institutions, or oversight ensuring that the military operates strictly within its designated capacities.
“When I told somebody about this lecture, I thought the theme was about the democratic control of the armed forces, but what I heard yesterday was not about that theme.
It was about a whole bunch of things that had nothing to do with the democratic control of the armed forces.
“But if we had stuck by that theme, then you take Tekyiman South, Ayawaso, Ashaiman, and the others, and you ask yourself:
Where are the democratic structures, institutions, and individuals that must exercise how the armed forces must apply the cohesive force or tools that they have? They have all been compromised. Because people in authority are refusing the armed forces.
“The simple ones are the soldiers in uniform with arms carrying the handbags of lawyers going to represent a political party in court. Another example is a soldier following the Attorney General to court.
“Is that how we go to the military academy and training school to be turned into carrying handbags? When the late queen of England carried her own handbag and umbrella, that did not detract from her status as the queen of England,” he explained.
