Arrest of 3 South Africans: We will not be intimidated by government – NPP
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has said it will do all it can to ensure the safety of its flagbearer and running mate.
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According to the NPP, it will not be intimidated by any attempts by government to criminalise the party’s measures to protect Nana Akufo-Addo and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.
In a Facebook post Thursday, the Communications Director of the party, Nana Akomea said the training of its security detail by the three retired police officers from South Africa was due to the increasing security lapses involving the party.
“The party's head office was raided and offices ransacked. It’s been over six months but nothing has come out of police investigations. Hon JB Danquah Adu has been killed in cold blood but not much progress seems to be made. NDC radio show hosts pronounce death on Nana Addo; NDC officials make comments on radio such as that made recently by a youth organiser George Owusu but national security does not take notice of these threats. The NPP is very concerned about these lapses and will do all it can to ensure safety of its leaders including enhanced training for their security personnel,” Nana Akomea noted.
According to him, the three South Africans were only in the country to provide training to the party’s security detail adding that, “their invitation letters were issued by a licensed security company in Ghana. Nothing was done in the dark.”
Below is the full statement by Nana Akomea
The three licensed VIP Protection specialists from South Africa have been charged with "conspiracy to commit crime, to wit, unlawful training and false declaration." They are expected to appear in court this morning.
The BNI have not been able to show which part of the Criminal Code the three have breached. But now that the matter is in court, we will see if the BNI has a good case or if this case will turn out to be like the Italian case in the year 2000 when 2 Italian visitors to the NPP were arrested and charged with being terrorists, and which ended nowhere.
The three men have been kept in custody beyond the 48 hour constitutional limit without charge and today is the fourth day. The BNI claims the three South Africans have broken the law but the BNI also breaks the law by keeping them beyond 48 hours without a court order.
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The three men in custody have told the BNI that they were invited to Ghana to train the security detail of Nana Akufo-Addo, Rebecca Akufo-Addo, Mahamudu Bawumia and Samira Bawumia. They came on a business visa and their business is offering VIP protection and training for bodyguards for VIPs. The materials they brought for the training, which came by airfreight, were addressed to Delta Security, the licensed Ghanaian security firm which facilitated the training before it was cut short by the arrests. Custom duty was paid and the items were cleared. Their invitation letters were issued by a licensed security company in Ghana. Nothing was done in the dark.
The three men did not sneak in through a neighbouring country and they did not come on a tourist visa. The training being given did not involve weapons. The training included disarming armed people without being armed yourself and this simulation exercise is done with plastic guns and knives, as was the case here.
The NPP is worried about the many security lapses involving the party. The party's head office was raided and offices ransacked. It’s been over six months but nothing has come out of police investigations. Hon JB Danquah Adu has been killed in cold blood but not much progress seems to be made. NDC radio show hosts pronounce death on Nana Addo; NDC officials make comments on radio such as that made recently by a youth organiser George Owusu but national security does not take notice of these threats. The NPP is very concerned about these lapses and will do all it can to ensure safety of its leaders including enhanced training for their security personnel.
We will continue to take all legitimate steps to keep our leaders safe and, by extension, our nation peaceful. We shall not be intimidated by this attempt by the NDC government to criminalize measures to protect them.
In this country, BNI officers are routinely trained by CIA experts, both here and abroad, and firefighting experts are brought here from the US to help us investigate fires in our country. These things are done with good intentions and it is in the same light that the NPP seeks to protect our leaders.
Nana Akufo-Addo was elected flag bearer in September 2014 and he has been responsible for his own security ever since. Government does not take responsibility for his safety and security. Why then would government criminalize a political party's initiative to keep its leaders and their spouses safe?
If a major political leader like Nana Addo is harmed, it will have very dire implications for our nation's security .