Kofi Ampeah Woode
The General Officer Commanding (GOC), Northern Command (N/COMD) – Brigadier General (Brig Gen) Frank Nartey Tei, has rounded off two days of operational visits to Ghana Army’s 11 and 12 Mechanized Battalions (Mech Bn), as part of his ongoing tour of Units under his command.
The 2-day visit which ended on Saturday 24 August 2024, saw the GOC – who was in the company of the Base Commander, Air Force Base, Tamale – Air Commodore (A/Cdre) Joshua Mensah-Larkai – pay a courtesy call on the Upper East Regional Minister – Mr Hafiz Bin Salih.
The GOC expressed his gratitude to the Regional Minister for his continued support to the 11 Mech Bn, and for the role the Regional Security Council (RESEC) played in ensuring the restoration of calm during the arson incident at Binduri in July 2024.
The GOC added that the security measures put in place, press engagement, and the scene visit by the Regional Minister, was timely and effective, indicating that the upcoming national presidential and parliamentary elections, are dear, and that Ghana’s security forces will play a critical role in ensuring a peaceful electoral process.
The Regional Minister noted that security is a collaborative effort of all security forces, the government and all of its citizenry, and acknowledged the sacrifices made by the military to restore and maintain relative calm to Bawku, and stability in the region, and hence assured the GOC and the Base Commander of his continued support for the military, and other security agencies during the elections.
Following the meeting, Brig Gen FN Tei addressed troops of 11 Mech Bn in a durbar, where he commended their performance in the monthly long-range patrols, joint patrols with the Ghana Police Service under the revitalized Operation Calm Life, and the demonstration of high standards of discipline – which he emphasized, remains bedrock to the Army.
The GOC further urged them to maintain their commitment to duty, and professionalism in anticipation of Operation Peace Trail, which is to ensure that the upcoming general elections are peaceful.
The Base Commander assured the ground forces of the Air Force’s continued support in their operations, and of the addition to routine schedules of flight services for troops and their families to Accra, as soon as air transport capabilities improve, and also reiterated the need for troops to exhibit and maintain professionalism and dedication.
The GOC conducted an inspection of ongoing projects at Abilba Barracks, and highly mentioned the Commanding Officer (CO), 11 Mech Bn – Lieutenant Colonel (Lt Col) Isaac Kobe Boako, for his exemplary work.
From 11 Mech Bn, the GOC visited the Tilli Detachment to engage directly with troops stationed at the front lines, where he addressed some pertinent concerns of troops and shared updates on the Higher Command’s efforts to improve the logistics and accommodation needs of troops.
In addition, Brig Gen Tei and A/Cdre Mensah-Larkai inspected the progress of construction work at the 12 Mech Bn Barracks at Sandema, and reviewed the current state of building projects, as they emphasized the critical need for robust infrastructure to maintain the operational readiness of the troops.
This visit underscored the commitment to ensure that facilities and logistics support are in place to meet the demands of military operations.
Present during the visits were the CO, 11 Mech Bn; Lt Col Martin Dziedzorm Dey – CO, 12 Mech Bn; Lt Col Ernest Darkwah – Incoming CO, Army Special Operations Training School; Lt Col Kakrah Sasu-Antwi – Incoming Commander Rear, 11 Mech Bn.
Others were Senior Warrant Officer Class 2 (SWOII) Awuni Ndebila – Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM), 12 Mech Bn; and WOI Attah James – Acting RSM 11 Mech Bn.
Credit: N/COMD HQ
