A seven-member committee has been formed by Speaker of the House Alban Bagbin to look into a leaked audio recording that details a plot to have Inspector-General of Police Dr. George Akuffo Dampare removed from office because he will be too strict and professional during the 2024 elections to allow the ruling New Patriotic Party to rig the results.
The committee should consist of three representatives from both the majority and minority parties in the house, as well as one technical person, according to the speaker.
His order was required by a statement made by Kofi Armah Buah, the deputy minority leader, in which he called for the formation of a committee to look into the explosive audio that had leaked.
A plot to remove the IGP with the intention of making it simpler for the ruling political party to thwart Ghanaians’ will, the Ellembelle lawmaker argued, should not be taken lightly and poses a threat to national security.
In a leaked audio that surfaced earlier this week, a politician who also identified as a former Northern regional chairman of the ruling NPP and a police commissioner discussed how to get rid of IGP Dr. George Akuffo Dampare because he is too firm and won’t allow the 2024 election to be rigged.
The Police Commissioner, who is rumored to be retiring, is heard telling the politician in the leaked audio that if the current IGP stays in office, the NPP should forget about winning the upcoming general elections.
In order to persuade the politician, Commissioner Mensa cited the strict security measures the IGP put in place during the recent Assin North by-election. He promised to take a similar or even more stringent approach, which might prevent the NPP from stealing the 2024 election.
“This IGP won’t help us. He won’t, he wants everything to be done fairly and we don’t win elections that way. If we don’t remove him, we can’t break the 8, in politics we need machinations and this IGP won’t allow that,” Commissioner Mensa said in the leaked audio.
He continued by lamenting the failure of his efforts to persuade President Akufo-Addo to fire IGP Dr. Dampare.
“The President is not listening; I have been telling him. Even if they don’t want to give me the job, they should give it to another person but they don’t want to listen,” Commissioner Mensa cried in the explosive audio.
Following the release of the video, many Ghanaians and analysts condemned the collusion that had been revealed and demanded an investigation, the identification of those responsible, and sanctions against them.
