CID Initiates Probe Into Threats On Afari-Gyan

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service has begun investigations into alleged death threats against the Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan.

The Director-General of the CID, Commissioner of Police (COP), Mr Prosper K. Agblor, told the Daily Graphic that although the EC boss had not reported the matter to the police, “once it is in the public domain, some officers have been sent to contact him and take his statement”.

“He is not just an ordinary person. Even if he were an ordinary person, once he is threatened, and we know about it, we have to investigate,” he explained.

Dr Afari-Gyan on Wednesday said he had received death threats because of the EC’s decision to creatE 45 new constituencies for the December polls.

The decision has been dogged with controversies. On two separate occasions, the Constitutional Instruments (CIs) to give legal backing to the process had been withdrawn and relaid.

While some civil society organisations are calling on the EC to re-consider its decision, the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has accused the EC of being in bed with the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) government hence its decision to supervise parliamentary primaries of the NDC in the yet-to-be-created constituencies.

Speaking at a public event organised by the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG) in Accra, Dr Afari-Gyan maintained that the commission would go ahead to discharge its constitutional mandate and would not be cowed or give in to intimidation.

“Let me say that I will not be frightened. I will do my work, the commission will do its work in accordance with the understandings of the rules and regulations under which it operates,” he said.

Some members of the public have called for increased protection for Dr Afari-Gyan to ensure that he went about his duties without looking over his shoulders.

That, Mr Agblor stated, was necessary but would not give details of the form of protection to be given the EC Chairman.

On the December elections, he said the police had put in place necessary measures to make the days leading to the elections and their aftermath violence-free.

He said the police had taken delivery of a number of vehicles in addition to the passing out of new recruits to augment security for the elections.

Mr Agblor also gave indications that the police would collaborate with National Security to look into the case of an audio recording of the National Organiser of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Yaw Boateng Gyan, in which he was discussing the infiltration of the ranks of the National Democratic Party, the release of funds for the operation and motivation for persons who will carry out the operation.

The 35-minute tape was suspected to have been recorded in a meeting with an unidentified party foot soldiers and had Mr Boateng-Gyan discussing plans to draft them into a Special Force of the Ghana Armed Forces whose members would later be given National Security identification cards to enable them to infiltrate the ranks of some parties especially the National Democratic Party (NDP).

The plan according to the voice, was to find information about the strategies of the NDP and its likely impact on the fortunes of the NDC in the December elections.

It also made reference to issuing the operatives with National Security identification cards but was not sure about the support from National Security, since in the past such provisions had been abused by those the party recruited for a similar exercise.

The recording also made references to the motivational package for the persons to be engaged which included a GH¢5,000 for the wives of the people to start a business.

Mr Boateng-Gyan has confirmed that the voice of the recording is his, prompting calls from several quarters including the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for his arrest.

But Mr Agblor said: “For now, the case is in the domain of the National Security so we would be collaborating with them to investigate the issues raised on the said tape.”