Samuel Atta Akyea, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Adhoc Committee tasked with investigating the leaked tape alleging a conspiracy to remove the Inspector General of Police (IGP), has come forward to explain and defend the committee’s decision to conduct hearings in-camera.
The committee recently announced that the testimonies of three police officers who have already appeared before them, as well as the testimony of IGP George Akuffo Dampare, will be held behind closed doors, out of the public eye.
Speaking on the issue, the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South elucidated that there exist overriding national security concerns that cannot be divulged in a public setting. He emphasized the committee’s discretion in making this decision.
“There is a necessity to fish out and substantiate what is on the tape which will bring certain matters which are very serious and might have national security implications out. So in our discretion, we believe that if this is for public consumption why not, and where we think that if these things should come out, it will hurt national security we will not have it in the open and we will go in-camera. This is the discretion that we have as a committee.”
This move by the committee comes in the wake of the Ghana Police Service’s initial interdiction of the officers who had testified before the committee. However, in an unexpected turn of events on Friday, September 8, the Service suspended the interdiction of the three senior officers. The reason cited for this suspension was to ensure it did not interfere with the ongoing parliamentary probe.
Regarding the leaked tape and its implications, Atta Akyea highlighted the need for substantiating the allegations. He urged the public to consider the importance of an in-camera setting for these sensitive matters, as it might help uncover crucial information regarding the alleged conspiracy and its potential impact on the upcoming elections.
“At this point, what is the evidence apart from the tape? So we need to now go into it. Is it the case that somebody was trying to conspire to remove an IGP for the basis of breaking the 8? Is this an NPP conspiracy? Is the IGP an enemy of NPP? These are matters that if people claim that this man is not good for the position of IGP vis-à-vis the upcoming elections, then we need to substantiate all the allegations,” Atta Akyea asserted.
The Chairman emphasized the gravity of the situation and the potential consequences of failing to substantiate these allegations, urging the public to understand the committee’s rationale for conducting hearings in-camera.
