Claim: NDC will sack members of the security agencies recruited under the NPP

Source: Viral visual cards

Verdict: FALSE

Researched by David Yovo-Ofori

Two visual cards shared by some X users claim the National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has said the next NDC government will dismiss all security personnel recruited under the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo-led government.

The visual cards shared by X user by name Boakye and reposted by pro-New Patriotic Party activist, Gen Buhari, on May 20, 2024, show the logos of  JoyNews and Class FM accompanying the claims attributed to Sammy Gyamfi.

“The NDC will resist all newly recruited officers into our security services. We will overhaul and sack all those politically recruited officers,” and “The next NDC Gov’t will sack all newly recruited security personnel,” the separate posts read.  

The two visual cards shared on X

 

The two visual cards reposted by a verified X user

Subsequent, a short video clip of a press briefing by Sammy Gyamfi was shared on X to reinforce the claims on the visual cards.

Background

On May 20, 2024, JoyNews reported that the Minority Caucus in Parliament had alleged the government had allocated 30 slots within the security agencies to each New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate. This generated a heated public debate and a flat denial by the Minister for Interior Henry Quartey.

Later, Sammy Gyamfi was invited by JoyNews for a discussion on the subject and other issues surrounding the 2024 General Election. 

During this discussion, Gyamfi affirmed the Minority’s claim and cited instances of alleged maltreatment and violence against innocent citizens during the 2020 general election due to the perceived infiltration of the security agencies by NPP members.

Fact-check

On May 20, 2024, JoyNews described the viral visual card as “fake” in a post on X.

Meanwhile checks by GhanaFact on the social media pages of Class FM show the media organisation has not published any visual card with such content. 

In verifying the video, GhanaFact traced the full video of the address by Sammy Gyamfi on July 22, 2020 during the NDC’s 8th Edition of their Weekly Press Briefing .

In the 1 hour, 19 minutes and 10 seconds video shared on the Facebook page of the NDC National Communications Bureau, the Communications Officer highlighted the compromised state of the the security services and added the party’s next step of action when they come into power. He could be heard partly saying; 

“The next NDC government will fish all of them out, including the policemen in uniform, that police commander at Effutu. Including all of them, Afenyo Markin and all these Members of Parliament. And that is why he said that we are all in this country and we’ll know what is happening. You can consider that as a threat or a warning. Because that day is coming, and it is coming really quick. We will fish all of them out and deal with them drastically, including the men in army uniforms, police uniforms, and all of them,” he said between 43minutes:12seconds to 43minutes:43seconds of the video. 

Also, between 45minutes and 29 seconds to 45minutes and 57seconds of the video, Sammy Gyamfi made the following remarks;

“We are aware, we know what the plan is, and we are telling them, all the people there, they are making their police career, the military officers are making their career in the military, that respected state security agency, coterminous with that of President Akufo Addo. The day President Akufo Addo will exit office will be the last day they will serve as policemen and military men, and we will deal with them mercilessly.”

“We have also cautioned members of our security agencies who still have their conscience intact, their integrity intact and who are not happy with what is happening that they must raise up and be counted. This is the time for them to act. Today the Ghana Armed Forces is being bastardized, as for the police they have been rendered useless by this government which has bastardized all security agencies. But there are good people in there and I dare say that the good people in there are in the majority,” he also said.

Verdict

The claims on the visual card are false. However, Sammy Gyamfi is on record to have said the NDC will purge the security agencies of politically aligned officers.