Reconcile Military Discipline With Democratic Principles - Interior Minister

Sekondi, (Central Region) 22 Sept.,

Nii Okaija Adamafio, Minister of the Interior, today called on the Armed Forces to reconcile military discipline with democratic principles to enhance national growth. He said the Armed Forces must find a solution to the problem if it is to maintain high standards and build on its legacies. Nii Okaija made the call at a five-day Naval Officers Convention which opened in Sekondi today under the theme ''Promoting higher Standards of Professionalism in the Ghana Navy ''. He said the country is confronted with the task of promoting accelerated growth, maintaining law and order, promoting human rights and nurturing its young democracy. Nii Okaija said the PNDC era was a period of intense political activity during which issues of accountability, probity and participatory democracy were brought into the centre of political life and became accepted norms. The decentralisation and economic justice are some of the principles that have, for instance, been given legal backing in the fourth republican constitution. He said the changes brought about by the revolution require new structures which call for a new kind of leadership that will harness all potentials and put them to optimum use. Nii Okaija said it is the responsibility of Officers to assume this leadership role and to help build a better Armed Forces and nation. Officers of the Armed Forces, he said, must be fair, firm and transparent in doing this. Commodore Joe Adoko, Officer in charge of the Western Naval Command, said the convention would be used to examine the role of the Navy under Vision 2020. He said the Navy must be sensitive to new policies and achieve efficiency with available resources. Rear Admiral E. O. Owusu-Ansah, Chief of Naval Staff, presided.