Defence, Interior committee visits Ashaiman
THE Parliamentary Select Committee on Defence and Interior yesterday paid a working visit to Ashaiman.
Advertisement
The visit follows the death of a 21-year-old soldier, Sherif Imoro, who was allegedly killed on Saturday, March 4.
The Chairman of the Committee, Kennedy Agyapong, said the visit was for the committee to acquaint itself with the incident which had since become a subject for national discussions.
The delegation, which included the Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, called on the family of the deceased at Zongo Laka, a suburb of Ashiaman, to commiserate with the parents of the late soldier.
The committee also addressed a gathering of residents of the area, some of whom were victims of brutalities that followed the killing of the soldier.
Members/Donation
Other members of the committee were the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wa West, Peter Lanchene Toobu; MP for Buem, Kofi Adams; MP for Talensi, Benson Baba Tongo; MP for Zebilla, Cletus Apul Avoka; MP for Builsa North, James Agalga, and MP for Ashaiman, Henry Ernest Norgbey.
The committee made a donation to the family of the deceased soldier, while the Chairman of the Committee offered scholarship up to the tertiary level to the younger brother of the deceased soldier, Abdul A.
Imoro, while Mr Agyapong also has promised to construct an ultra-modern astro turf to be named after the deceased soldier.
The chairman of the committee also made a personal cash donation to the bereaved family while the military also made a cash donation to the family, aside from the entitlement of the dead soldier that will be worked out and pay to the family later.
Mr Agyapong described the death of the soldier and the aftermath brutalities as unfortunate and regrettable and commiserated with the family, stressing that the committee would conduct its work with the evidence gathered from the visit and make the necessary recommendations.
He called for calm and urged the family to have confidence in the police to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators and come up with workable solutions.
Mr Nitiwul entreated leaders and the youth of Ashaiman who share a boundary with a military community, the First Battalion of Infantry, Michel Camp, to maintain close collaboration with the soldiers in order to foster a stronger civil-military relationship.
While pledging support for the bereaved family through their journey of grief, he cautioned that “let this be the last time men and women in uniform will be killed in the hands of people they (uniformed persons) seek to protect”.
Oversight
Ranking Member of the committee, Mr Agalga, extended the sympathies of the committee and Parliament to the family of the deceased soldier and victims of the brutalities.
He said Parliament in exercising its oversight responsibilities would thoroughly evaluate the evidence collected from the visit and make the necessary recommendations.
A member of a pressure group calling itself Ashaiman Lives Matter, Emmanuel Kumadey, briefed the committee members on brutalities and presented evidence in the form of medical reports, pictures of the abused persons and police reports to the committee.
Mr Kumadey disclosed that one of the victims of the military brutalities, Alhaji Mohammed Musah, lost his life three days ago from injuries sustained.
Writer’s email: [email protected]