STATE OF GHANA ARMED FORCES Before NPP Took Over Power In 2001

The Defence Minister, Lt. Gen. Smith, who will be meting the press today, indicated when he took over as Minister of Defence that the New Patriotic Party messed up with the Ghana Armed Forces and left it worse off in terms of resources and structures.

This is in spite of the assessment of its own mouthpiece which admits that the Armed Forces is in a much, much deteriorated state.

In the AFNEWS First Quarter 2012, for instance, the official mouthpiece states: “these [military operations] are behest with lack of logistics and funds as well as administrative problems.”

It adds: “Many of the patrol vehicles are currently unserviceable, due to the non-availability of spare parts. Some vehicles are worn out due to extensive usage and over-age.”

“...State of the art equipment and accessories such as communications equipment required for patrol is very deplorable and in some cases not even available to cater for the administrative needs of personnel.”

As former Army Commander, who is conversant with the history of PNDC and the NDC's own rape and neglect of the Ghana Armed Forces, the Minister of Defence however failed to acknowledge the fact of the New Patriotic Party's major interventions, including the creation of accommodation facilities for officers and other ranks which were in short supply – including the construction of a modern military headquarters set up where he now operates as Minister of Defence.

Smith is aware that there was a programme to build health facilities for the Northern Command to improve the logistics needs of the Armed Forces. Till date, though funds were sourced by the previous NPP administration to initiate the project, Smith and the NDC has failed to continue where the NPP left off with the childish excuse that the land has been encroached upon.

As Smith addresses the media today, DAYBREAK hopes he will be sane and sincere enough to the issues and enlighten Ghanaians.

As far as we know, before the NPP government took over in 2001, there was no doubt that morale among troops was very low during the reign of the PNDC/ NDC.

What were some of the factors that accounted for this?

Over aged Soldiers: Non- retirement of over aged soldiers chocked the system resulting in low career progression for the young ones. This compounded the existing accommodation problems and career advancement for those who had more years to serve.

State of Uniforms: Lack of uniforms resulted in soldiers wearing different types of uniforms which they bought from their own sources. What could one see? A mixture of uniforms of different shades, colours and designs worn by soldiers. This compromised uniformity, which is a serious principle in all Armed Forces the world over.

Accommodation: The poor state of accommodation forced many officers and men to live outside barracks. Those who lived at the barracks were crammed into single rooms with their families. This contributed to job dissatisfaction, low morale and hatred for military high command and the officer corps in general.

Peacekeeping Allowances: Allowance for peacekeeping operations was as low as $10.00 per day for UN missions and $5.00 for ECOMOG operations in Liberia. Meanwhile, peacekeepers from other countries were well paid. It would be noted that in 1991, this poor remuneration nearly caused a muting among soldiers on peacekeeping mission with Ghana Battalion One in Cambodia.

Pension: Pension for retired soldiers was nothing to write home about. There were a lot of complaints from our ex-servicemen who had sacrificed their lives for the nation about their scanty pension.

37 Military Hospital: The 37 Military Hospital, which has over the years served as one of the country's emergency health facilities, was in a state of despair. Deteriorating buildings, poor equipment and lack of doctors among other problems rendered the hospital ineffective in healthcare delivery.

Salaries and Allowances: Salaries and allowances were very low leading to low morale among Ghanaian soldiers whose duty is to protect the territorial integrity of the country either by land, sea or air.

Appointments to Diplomatic Missions: This is a prestigious position in the Armed Forces which must be based purely on merit. Sadly, this was not the case. Selection of personnel for these important and envious appointments was based on tribal lines more than competence and suitability. The last diplomatic appointments made by the NDC in 1998/9 were as follows:

1. Brig Gen Attipoe (VR) - DA Washington DC, USA.
2. GP Capt Dovlo (VR) - India.
3. Col Agbemasu (VR) - Nigeria.
4. Capt (GN) Pupulampu (ER) - London, UK.
5. Col EA Klutsey (VR) - Deputy DA London, UK.

These tribal based appointments obviously created disaffection among senior officers from the other tribes. How could these appointments be skewed to favour one particular tribe as indicated above?

State of the Air Force: The state of aircrafts in the Air Force was very low and this affected its operational capability and morale of officers and men.

State of the Navy: The fleet of the Ghana Navy ships was also low. Consequently, the Navy could not police the county's territorial waters effectively.

Recruitment: Recruitment in the Ghana Armed Forces was perceived by the general public to be on tribal basis. It became so worrying that the Parliament at that time drew the Government's attention to it and asked that recruitment should be regionally balanced.

Even if Konadu leads NDP, NDC is poised to win - Segbefia

Deputy Chief of staff, Alex Segbefia says the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is poised to win the December polls irrespective of who the breakaway party, the National Democratic Party (NDP) picks as its flag-bearer.

Mr. Segbefia who spoke on Radio XYZ's current affairs programme, The Analysts was responding to the possibility of Mrs. Rawlings emerging as the flag-bearer of the NDP in the December polls.

He noted that even if Mrs. Rawlings agrees to lead the NDP, that will not be the first time people from the same household, will differ on political line. 

“We are poised and ready to fight for the election. All other contestants who wish to get into can do so. That is the beauty of the democracy that we have,” he said.

He said individuals in the Ala Adjetey and the Jinapor families belong to all the various political parties yet they are still related and that Mrs. Rawlings joining the NDP will only strengthen the countries democratic credentials.