Law enforcement alone won’t work – DCOP Abdul-Razak on chieftaincy, galamsey crisis

The National Security Coordinator, DCOP Osman Abdul-Razak, is urging traditional rulers to play a more active role in dealing with growing internal security challenges in the country.

Speaking at a meeting with the National House of Chiefs on Friday, August 1, he named chieftaincy conflicts, illegal mining, and the spread of firearms as some of the major threats confronting national peace and stability.

He pointed to specific concerns, including the long-standing Bawku chieftaincy impasse, environmental damage caused by galamsey, and increasing gun-related deaths at social gatherings such as funerals.

“We are urging His Royal Majesty and the entire House to support the management of these threats. Previous mechanisms have failed because we focused only on law enforcement. We now want to treat this as a multi-coordinated agency effort,” he told the gathering.

According to DCOP Abdul-Razak, current efforts by security agencies alone are not enough to tackle the growing complexities of these issues, which often originate from traditional or community-level disputes.

He announced that the National Security Secretariat is restructuring Ghana’s security framework to formally include traditional leadership in its operations.

“You are not alone in this fight. The National Security Secretariat has decided to restructure the security architecture, recognising that many of the laws we seek to enforce stem from traditional norms. Therefore, we see the National House of Chiefs and the Regional Houses of Chiefs as an integral part of our security system,” he added.

The meeting is part of ongoing efforts to engage the country’s traditional institutions in the fight against threats that undermine national cohesion.