Defense Minister Dominic Nitiwul has come out to defend the government against accusations of responsibility for the post-electoral violence in Ghana.
This statement comes in the wake of increasing calls for both President Akufo-Addo and President-elect John Dramani Mahama to take action in response to the violence.
While Mahama has condemned the incidents and pledged to investigate, President Akufo-Addo has remained silent, prompting public concern.
During his address to Parliament on Monday, December 16, Mr. Nitiwul clarified that the responsibility for maintaining security during and after the elections lay with the National Elections Security Task Force, headed by the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
He stressed that if Parliament sought a briefing on the matter, it would be inappropriate for ministers or government appointees to appear, as they had no direct involvement in security matters.
Nitiwul further explained that the security of the election process had always been handled separately from the government to ensure impartiality.
He suggested that any further inquiries should be directed to the IGP and his team, who were responsible for managing election security.
“On the day and after elections, it was the National Elections Security Task Force led by the Inspector General of Police that was in charge of security, and so if the Speaker thinks or the House thinks that they want to call the election security to come and brief this House, it cannot be ministers or government appointees, because they have no role.”
“And in fact, it was good that the Executive were not in charge of security. It has always been like that because you cannot be a judge of your own court. It is wrong. And so that is why if you are calling somebody, it can only be the IGP and his team.”
