Rev John Ntim Fordjour, the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee has stated President John Mahama’s major shake-up at the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is backward, costly and farfetched.
The member of parliament on Facebook criticised President John Mahama’s decision to restructure the leadership at GAF.
According to John Ntim Fordjour, the officers still had up to six years before retirement.
He noted that their removal would be at a cost to Ghanaian taxpayers.
Ntim Fordjour in his post on Facebook wrote, “President Mahama has today dismissed Chief of Defence Staff and all Service Chiefs in Ghana Armed Forces and all 12 most senior military officers of the rank of Major-General equivalent and above (i.e all 2 star Generals, 3 star Generals and 4 star General).
Most of these Generals by rank and age, have six (6) more years to serve in the military before their retirement. What this implies on the public purse is that, gratuities will have to be paid running into millions of cedis due to the egoistic premature dismissals of senior ranked generals, replacing them with lower ranked Brigadier Generals and equivalent (1 star Generals) at the command of Ghana Armed Forces.
Just when Ghana expanded its military might; upgrading key corps such as armour, artillery, signals and 48 Engineers to Brigade status thereby attaining 4-star General status for the Chief of Defence of Staff, Mahama has reset the top hierarchy back to 1-star General as Chief of Defence Staff. This reset is indeed backward, costly and farfetched”, he added.
A statement from Presidential Spokesperson and Minister of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, released on Monday, March 17, confirmed President John Dramani Mahama has made significant changes in the leadership of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) these appointments will take effect on March 24, 2025.
The newly appointed officers are:
- Acting Chief of the Defence Staff – Brigadier General William Agyapong
- Acting Chief of Army Staff – Brigadier General Lawrence Kwaku Gbetanu
- Acting Chief of Naval Staff – Commodore Godwin Livinus Bessing
- Acting Chief of Air Staff – Air Commodore Eric Agyen-Frempong
- Acting Chief of Staff – Brigadier General Glover Ashong Annan
Additionally, President Mahama held a meeting with the outgoing service chiefs, led by Chief of the Defence Staff General Thomas Oppong-Peprah, at the Flagstaff House.
He thanked them for their unwavering dedication to the nation and assured them that their expertise would continue to play a vital role in shaping Ghana’s security policies.
See the post below:
President Mahama has today dismissed Chief of Defence Staff and all Service Chiefs in Ghana Armed Forces and all 12 most senior military officers of the rank of Major-General equivalent and above (i.e all 2 star Generals, 3 star Generals and 4 star General). Most of these… pic.twitter.com/OLX48y4NHj
— John Ntim Fordjour MP (@NtimFordjour) March 18, 2025
