NCCE-ECOWAS Dialogue: We Must Pass Down the Most Peaceful Version of Ghana to Posterity – Maj. Gen. Tim Ba-Taa Banah (PhD)

Director of the National Counter-Terrorism Fusion Centre (NCTFC), Major General Tim Ba-Taa Banah (PhD), has commended successive governments, security services, and the general populace for the efforts made in safeguarding Ghana’s security over these sixty-nine (69) years, highlighting that we cannot afford to be complacent. He made this statement during a recently held National Dialogue organised by the National Commission for Civic Education, with support from ECOWAS Ghana, where he served as one of the three discussants of the event.

According to the Major General, the nation has oftentimes focused much on the northern borders, calling for vigilance of the same magnitude at the southern borders. “We are either peaceful entirely or unsafe completely; what happens in Paga has a reflection on Elubo”, he stated.

Dr. Banah also revealed that by virtue of Ghana’s geographic location and size, criminal activities can easily engulf the country in entirety if all borders are not equally secured. “Ghana occupies just about 238,000 square kilometres; if a criminal moves from the north in the morning, by midday to evening, he would have reached the southern communities”, he asserted.

Meanwhile, Principal State Attorney/Analyst Crime and Criminality at the National Centre for Coordination of Early Warning and Response Mechanism, Victoria Ama Asieduwaa Esq., who was also on the panel, disclosed that while we fixate on the structural vulnerabilities such as illegal mining, drug trafficking, among others, it is essential that security systems do not lose sight of the enabling factors, including unemployment, corruption, to mention but a few, which usually trigger participation in these illicit ventures.

She, however, expressed concern about the low levels of reporting criminal activities among citizens, which she attributed to a perceived plunge in trust in the security services. She therefore added her voice to the advocacy for a strengthened partnership between security services and citizens.

Speaking to why Ghana should be concerned about the security of neighbouring countries, Senior Research Fellow at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Dr. Mustapha Abdallah, intimated that the risks or vulnerabilities, such as inequalities, marginalisation, gaps in governance, among others, pertaining to those areas are not different from what prevails here in our country.

He also underscored the thin line between balancing security consciousness and extending hospitality to other nationals, emphasising that inasmuch as we wholeheartedly welcome foreigners into our midst, we ought to show interest in their conduct in the communities. He therefore encouraged citizens to report suspicious activities to the appropriate authorities as part of their contribution to the nation’s security.