Rawlings expresses opposition to American training Base in Ghana

Ghana's Former President, Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) Jerry John Rawlings is not enthused about arrangements to provide space in Ghana for the operations of American military personnel as part of a US-Ghana defence cooperation arrangement.


In a tweet he posted Wednesday, Flt Lt said while Ghanaians may love Americans, it cannot be to the extent that they would accommodate foreign troops on a large scale.


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/dDFGtK9OUx">pic.twitter.com/dDFGtK9OUx</a></p>— Jerry John Rawlings (@officeofJJR) <a href="https://twitter.com/officeofJJR/status/976473981703327745?ref_src=twsrc^tfw">March 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


He suggested that the presence of US troops in the country as being championed by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, could be considered as foreign domination on the economic and social lives of Ghanaians.

The government is vehemently pushing for the hosting of military personnel and equipment from the US in Ghana, following a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the countries earlier in March 2018.

The Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, who laid the agreement before Parliament for consideration on Tuesday, argued that Ghana stands to benefit so much from the agreement.

While denying that a land will be allocated to foreign troops to serve as a base, he said a few buildings have been identified close to the Kotoka International Airport to be made available for the use of the US officers.

As part of the agreement, the US military will be exempted from paying taxes on equipment they will bring to Ghana.

They will also be allowed to set up a telecommunication system on Ghana’s radio spectrum for free.

Ghanaian authorities will also be restricted from accessing the facilities given to the US officials when they begin using them.

Also, the foreign troops will be permitted to wear their uniforms, carry weapons, and use their foreign documents including drivers’ licenses in the country without restriction.

Although some Ghanaians are not happy about the agreement, Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul says their concerns are misplaced.

Meanwhile, the minority in Parliament has called on the government to immediately withdraw the agreement from Parliament.



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