Security Analyst and Executive Director of Jatikay Centre for Human Security and Peace Building, Adib Saani is mounting pressure on the National Security Minister, Albert Kan-Dapaah to resign over failure to heed to warnings signs in connection with the Western Togoland Secessionist Group.
This comes after some members of the Western Togoland Secessionist Group went on rampage in North Tongu on the dawn of Friday, September 25, 2020.
“We ignored the early warning signs and thought this was all a joke. We arrest and release, re-arrest and release again. Despite the presence of intelligence officers, they have largely failed to gather actionable intel in real time,” Adib Saani stated.
Members of the group who took over Juapong, a town in North Tongu District of the Volta Region, mounted huge sign posts with the inscription ‘Welcome to Western Togoland’ at different entry points and also prevented motorists from leaving the town.
The members also captured three personnel of the Ghana Police Service after attacking the Aveyime and Mepe Police Stations.
They burnt car tyres and mounted road blocks at different entry points, all in the name of seeking independence of their land.
Their action has, however, caused fear and panic in residents of the area and has also posed security threats to the nation as a whole.
Reacting to the actions of the Western Togoland Secessionist Group, Adib Saani stated that,”Going forward, the over 100 kilometer Accra – Atimpoku – Juapong stretch is very crucial and needs permanent detachment stationed within that enclave. The Adome Bridge and the dam are high value targets that we cannot trade off.”
Below is a statement:
National Security Minister Must Resign
For failure to heed to warning signs…
When this Togoland issue started, some of us within the security space did not spare any moment or mince words, raising serious concerns about their activities and the existential threat they posed to the security of Ghana.
Unfortunately, over the past few years, they have become more audacious and brazen and we can only expect more. They are able to make strong political statements and control the narrative. They seem to be succeeding into bullying government into submission. They have succeeded in disrupting lives and holding the nation hostage. Soon, we might go beyond condemning their actions to asking them what their demands are. With a heavy heart, I predict they might start targeting critical infrastructure. They have the capacity and geographical advantage (forest cover and international border) to engage in an assymetrical warfare that could be hard to win.
We ignored the early warning signs and thought this was all a joke. We arrest and release, re-arrest and release again. Despite the presence of intelligence officers, they have largely failed to gather actionable intel in real time.
Going forward, the over 100 kilometer Accra – Atimpoku – Juapong stretch is very crucial and needs permanent detachment stationed within that enclave. The Adome bridge and the dam are high value targets that we cannot trade off.
Let us invest in human security because largely, these secessionists have some level of Community support.
Let us collaborate more effectively with Togolese authorities so the group doesnt engage in cross border activities and the trafficking of weapons to oil their seeming war machine.
Ghana| Atinkaonline.com| Porcia Oforiwaa Ofori
