Pubdate: Wed, 16 Aug 2006 Source: Daily Graphic (Ghana) Copyright: 2006 Graphic Communications Group Ltd. Contact: http://www.graphicghana.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3662 Author: Kofi Yeboah Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) COCAINE IS REAL THREAT TO DEMOCRACY - POKU RAISES ALARM The Minister for National Security, Mr Francis Kwaku Poku, yesterday sounded the alarm that the large quantities of narcotics being trafficked into Ghana could destabilise the country's democratic institutions. He said there was real fear that drug barons could infiltrate the Legislature, Judiciary and political parties and that could destabilise all the democratic institutions. Mr Poku sounded the alarm when he gave evidence before the Justice Georgina Wood Committee, and urged all Ghanaians to deal with the cocaine issue in a non-partisan manner. "I will appeal to all political, religious, pressure groups and the youth of the country to lend their unqualified support to the security and law enforcement agencies in the fight against the evil menace of illicit drugs," he said. According to the minister, he offered to appear before the committee to address a number of issues arising out of the work of the committee which he considered to be of security importance. He explained that he pleaded for a public hearing to allow Ghanaians to be aware of certain dangers confronting the nation as a result of the threat arising from the importation and exportation of illicit drugs. Delivering what appeared to be a prepared text, in about 75 minutes, Mr Poku said the security agencies were monitoring many drug-related crimes and social vices such as occultism, gangsterism and prostitution, extending even to the universities. He said they were also monitoring cases of the youth dying as a result of swallowing cocaine-laden pellets in the process of trafficking the drug to Europe and other parts of the world. Mr Poku said there was the real fear that given the large scale of drugs being targeted at Ghana, political parties could be infiltrated by drug barons. "Only political parties? So you have no concern for the Judiciary where I work?", the chairperson chipped in, drawing laughter from the audience. Mr Poku agreed with the chairperson and added that "I've given these examples to alert Ghanaians to the fact that what we are doing here is a serious issue that must be dealt with on non-partisan basis." He told the committee about measures the security agencies had put in place, as far as national security would allow, to fight the cocaine dangers. The minister said more than one year ago, the security agencies received intelligence that drug syndicates operating from some specific countries were targeting Ghana as a destination for drugs. He said the intelligence also indicated that the syndicates were helping some Ghanaians to acquire boats with which they would offload drugs from vessels and transport them to various locations in the country in transit to the European markets. Mr Poku said upon receipt of the intelligence, the National Security Council (NSC), which was chaired by the President, took various measures, such as the alertness of all the security agencies at the points of entry and an exercise to search containers, especially at the ports. Furthermore, the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) was asked to co-ordinate with the other security agencies to check the backgrounds of applicants for visa. He said the security agencies also initiated intelligence co-operation with countries in Africa and Europe, while undertaking other surveillance measures. Focusing on the MV Benjamin cocaine issue, Mr Poku said when the vessel sailed from its country of origin, intelligence on its movement was received. He said in an attempt to deceive the security agencies, the name of the vessel was changed from MV Benjamin to MV Adede at high seas only to be restored to its original name just before it berthed at Tema. Mr Poku said information was passed on to the Ghana Airforce, which successfully located the vessel and later informed the Ghana Navy. He said a collaboration between the Ghana Navy and the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) led to the interception of the suspected drugs on the vessel, adding that the President was briefed about the progress of the operation and he (President) gave his full support to it. Mr Poku said the NSC was informed that the Ghana Navy and NACOB had succeeded in evacuating a consignment of substances believed to be drugs and that three persons had been arrested. He said the NSC was, however, told later that some unidentified persons had succeeded in diverting most of the consignments. It was also alleged, he added, that later, a harvester containing 30 slabs of cocaine weighing 30 kilogrammes was discovered on board MV Benjamin but indicated that five kilogrammes were missing from the Exhibits Store of NACOB. Mr Poku said with the approval of the President and the Minister of the Interior, he (Poku) set up a three-member committee to investigate the matters arising out of the co-operation. According to Mr Poku, the committee reported within one week and submitted copies of its report to the President, the Minister of the Interior and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice for legal advice. He said his attention had been drawn to a tape recording in circulation on matters relating to MV Benjamin and the operation, as well as a meeting at the residence of the Director-General of Operations of the Ghana Police Service, ACP Kofi Boakye, on matters relating to the MV Benjamin operation. "To the best of my knowledge, the President did not have a copy of the tape", he claimed, explaining that in his own experience in dealing with the President, all security-related materials, documents of security interest that reached him (President) were handed over to him (Poku) as the national security head as soon as possible. "And in this instance, I can confirm that the President requested the security agencies to endeavour to obtain a copy of the tape. A tape was obtained by the Minister of the Interior from a journalist. However, when it was transcribed, it was found to be a very short version and contained not much information of security interest", he said. Mr Poku denied that ACP Boakye notified him before his meeting with the suspected drug dealers as was being speculated by a section of the media. "I remember, however, that ACP Kofi Boakye mentioned to me that he had met certain persons sometime in April, who appeared to know of the drugs that were diverted by unknown persons at the port of Tema", he submitted. Mr Poku said he advised ACP Boakye to contact a committee that he had set up to make any information available to it. Turning to the East Legon cocaine case, the National Security Minister said the NSC was informed sometime in November 2005 that the CID had arrested two Venezuelans at East Legon in Accra in connection with the discovery of 588 parcels of substances suspected to be narcotic drugs. He said everything appeared to be going well in the investigations until Ms Grace Asibi publicly alleged that Supt Edward Tabiri, the then Head of the Rapid Response Unit of the CID, had extorted $170,000 from her. Mr Poku said in consultation with the Minister of the Interior, he set up a task force to investigate the bribery allegation against Supt Tabiri. He said a copy of their report was submitted to the Minister of the Interior. Mr Poku said in view of the extraordinary local and international interest that the two cases had generated, the President approved the setting up of the Georgina Wood Committee to sit in public and give opportunity to all Ghanaians with information to be able to testify. At the end of his testimony, the chairperson opened the floor for cross-examination but counsel for ACP Boakye did not find the need to do so because they believed that the evidence given by Mr Poku corroborated what they had given earlier at the committee. Supt Tabiri and Ms Asibi and their counsel were not present to make any cross-examination. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman