The lies caused me severe pains

-Dr Dampare debunks all false accusations

By Elvis DARKO, Accra

Dr George Akuffo Dampare  the Inspector General of Police (IGP) says the wild allegations made by some colleague Police officers against him caused severe him and his family severe pain. 

According to him, the allegations made by Commissioner of Police (COP) Alex Mensah, Superintendent George Asare, were deliberately made to tarnish his image and reputation.

“Those wild allegations without a shred of evidence have brought a lot of pain to me, my family across the country and especially my wife and children.

“The pain also to my team, my command, and thousands of police personnel. I am innocent, focusing on my job and working with my team to keep the country safe, but I must be called here to answer unfounded claims.

“This is just not fair, are we killing patriotism that anybody can just wake up and make allegations?” the IGP asked.

“Instead of them focusing on the matter, they came out with wild allegations, that touched my person, the police leadership that I lead, and the entirety of the police service. 

“Until today I am now being told that they have some evidence. Without a shred of evidence, at the time that they were making the allegations, not a shred of evidence,” he said.

He highlighted his commitment to upholding the law and maintaining the integrity of the Ghana Police Service and expressed his willingness to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation, vowing to provide any necessary information or assistance to uncover the truth behind the leaked tape.

He expressed his willingness to cooperate fully with the Ad-hoc committee investigating a leaked tape and accusations levelled against him by the previous witnesses, which the committee believes must be addressed.

Dr Dampare was invited before the Ad-hoc committee on Friday, September 8 following accusations that have been levelled against him by the previous witnesses, which the committee believes must be addressed.

The IGP categorically denied any involvement in plotting a secret recording with the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Northern Regional Chairman, Daniel Bugri Naabu.

The leaked audio recordings purportedly contain conversations involving Mr Naabu and other high-ranking police officials, over a plot to remove the IGP to help the NPP rig the 2024 polls.

They are Commissioner of Police (COP) Alex Mensah, Superintendent George Asare, and Superintendent Emmanuel Eric Gyebi – and Bugri Naabu.

Nonetheless, COP Mensah strongly denied the authenticity of the tape, claiming that it had been doctored and did not accurately reflect the original conversation with Mr Naabu.

On his part, Superintendent Asare also noted that portions of the tape were doctored and accused the IGP of plotting the audio recording when he appeared before the committee.

While Superintendent Gyebi denied any knowledge of knowing Mr Bugri Naabu before the Committee, Mr Bugri Naabu cited all three police officers as his accomplices when he testified before the Committee as the first witness in the ongoing probe. 

Dr Dampare told the Committee that the respect he had for President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the police service, hence his decision to appear before the committee to answer the allegations leveled against him.

“I am here I have no choice, I am doing this because of the respect I have for myself, my family especially my wife and children, and for the respect, I have for institutions of the state, and more importantly the respect I have for the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and the respect I have for Ghanaians. I am here to answer all your questions, on wild allegations by my brothers,” he said.

IGP position on merit

Dr George Akuffo Dampare says his rise to the position of Inspector General of Police (IGP) is based on merit and not any other considerations.

According to him, being diligent about his work, competencies, academic qualifications and hard work are what got him to the position he occupies currently saying he earned his position duly and not based on favours.

“I have not at any point in time been called aside by any individual and granted any favour,” he said.

Denies any role in recording the audio

The IGP refuted allegations that he was part of a conspiracy to secretly record conversations of the three implicated police officers.

He highlighted his commitment to upholding the law and maintaining the integrity of the Ghana Police Service and expressed his willingness to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation, vowing to provide any necessary information or assistance to uncover the truth behind the leaked tape.

Rejects worst tag

He rejected assertions by COP Alex Mensah that he is the worst to occupy the position.

According to him, the facts are there for anyone to see and make a judgement.

“Perhaps my brother wanted to say I’m the best IGP but missed it. The records are there for everyone to see. It is not true my administration is the worst. He missed it. It can never be true that my administration is the work.”

“Is unfounded and it is baseless. I think what the person could have done if he had nothing to say is to keep quiet,” he said.

The IGP said he is working collectively to ensure that his team becomes the best in the history of the Police Service.

He further told the committee that his administration has carefully learned from its predecessors and is determined to create a formidable service for generations to come.

No power to influence elections

Dr Dampare stated that no individual has the power to determine the outcome of elections as it was heard in the leaked tape.

He said elections constitute several stakeholders who have individual significant roles to play and hence, no entity is superior to the other or has the sole authority to determine the results of elections.

“And the election is a simple matter where each stakeholder plays its role and collectively, we end up ensuring that it is over and the people then decide who becomes the leader.”

“So no entity or institution has some supremacy in terms of its role in ensuring that elections are successful, as far as I’m concerned, all the stakeholders have to play their role and because each role is unique, you cannot even be compelled to say which one is on top and which one is not,” he explained.

The IGP added that the assumption that the strength of his personality and what he stands for could decide the aftermath of elections is just someone’s opinion and he cannot influence that.

However, he will continue to be diligent and honest with his job and professionally work as a team with his commanders.

One-man show claim is false

The IGP denied running a one-man show at the Ghana Police Service.

Dr Dampare said he is not running a one-man show and that he consults with other senior police officers before making decisions.

“My Police Management Board (POMAB) members are here, unfortunately, they are not on oath so they cannot testify, we would have heard them. They call it united POMAB, and it is a chain, nobody breaks it unless you are going on retirement and then we replace you.

“This whole idea of running a one-man show is just to paint me black, so it is never true.

“They went to lie thinking that we would never get the opportunity to speak to it,” he said.

Promotions not withheld

The IGP denied withholding the promotions of officers who are due for promotion.

Dr Dampare refuted these allegations and indicated that the service had promoted all who were due.

He said the Ghana Police Service had promoted all officers who were due.

“There is no hold up of promotion of any junior officer in the whole police service. Even as we speak, the structure has been that any junior officer who is four years old is sent to training and they are promoted. And they are waiting to promote the next set of officers who are due for promotion. So, there is nobody in the service whose promotion is being held. So that is another set of concocted stories which is being put out there for mischievous reasons,” Dr Dampare said.

“So, everybody who is supposed to be promoted based on the junior rank has been done and everybody who is supposed to be promoted based on the senior rank have been promoted and that is where we are,” he said.

No involvement in interdiction

He said he was not of the decision to interdict three officers for their involvement in a viral leaked tape which seeks to oust him from office.

He said the decision was taken by the Police Council and he recused himself from it.

According to him, since the matter broke, he has recused himself from all decisions regarding it.

Claims of speaking to Mahama rejected

Dr Dampare also vehemently denied allegations that he frequently speaks to President John Mahama.

No Special Dampare Unit

He denied claims that he has created a ‘Special Dampare Unit’ in the Police Service that reports only to him.

The IGP said there was no such unit and urged the public to treat the claim with the contempt it deserves.

He explained that as part of a decentralization agenda, such intelligence units work under their regional commanders and report to them not to the IGP.

He said he worked with his colleagues to decentralize that unit such that each of the 25 policing commands will have their own intelligence units that shape intelligence gathering to form the operations of the region.

No working relations Naabu

Dr Dampare renounced having any working relations with Mr Daniel Bugri Naabu, a former Northern Regional Chair of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Appearing before Parliament’s seven-member bi-partisan Committee probing an alleged leaked tape plotting his removal from office, he said: “I do not have any working relations with him.”

This was in a response to a question asked by Mr James Agalga, the Vice Chairperson of the Committee whether he had working relations with Mr Bugri Naabu.

When he was further asked by Mr Agalga, also a National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa North whether he contracted Mr Bugri Naabu to secretly record the leaked tape, Mr Dampare responded in the negative “No.”

At the start of proceedings, Mr Kwame Gyan, the Lawyer for Dr Dampare, requested for the three implicated senior police officers to be excused from the proceedings during his client’s testimony in the ongoing leaked tape probe.

But, it was overruled by Chairman of the Committee, Samuel Atta Akyea.

National Security Minister, Albert Kan Dapaah, Mr Naabu and the IGP have been invited to appear before the Committee today.