Professor Kwesi Aning is Security Analyst
Security Analyst, Professor Kwesi Aning, has expressed concerns regarding the timing and potential political motives behind recent actions by Ghana’s security agencies
Speaking on Channel One TV, on August 2, 2025, he cited two specific events: the demolition of a McDan Group warehouse and the arrest of the NPP’s Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi-Boasiako better known as Chairman Wontumi.
Prof Aning urged the public and policymakers to critically examine how and when security agencies act on intelligence and implement national decisions.
“When do statutory security agencies get access to critical information upon which they act, and how should those operations be undertaken? One example is the demolition of this particular structure. When did it become law that that structure ought to be demolished? Has the fact just come out, or has the fact always been there but was politicised?” he asked.
Making reference to the recent invitation of Chairman Wontumi by National Security, Prof Aning sought to link both events to broader governance concerns.
“The second is the invitation of Chairman Wontumi. When did it become clear that some of the activities by his company had flouted national rules? I am raising these two examples to broaden the conversation about timing performance and political control,” he said.
He argued that these developments reflect deeper issues surrounding decision-making at the highest levels of national security and warned that selective enforcement risks could erode public trust.
“When did National Security, or the council, decide that there was a need for a National Security Council-approved operation to demolish a structure? Have the facts always been known to other statutory institutions that ought to have given the permit, or ought not to have given the permit for that structure to be there?” he quizzed.
He consequently called for a national dialogue on institutional capacity and transparency, emphasising that effective governance requires consistent application of the law and the confidence of the citizenry.
“So, while we talk about the excerpts, we also need to broaden the conversation because this is about institutional capacity and more importantly, the trust that citizens have in the statutory institutions,” he stated.
VPO/EB
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