Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has disclosed Tuesday, that some military personnel have been picked up in connection with a recent bust of a coup plot.

Speaking on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM, the Minister said the arrest of the officers is part of an in-depth investigation into the attempt by a group of persons to take over the reins of government.

“The [military persons] are being interrogated in connection with this enterprise,” Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said.

He said the government has been fully brief by state security agencies including Defence Intelligence under the Ghana Armed Forces, the Bureau of National Investigations and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) on the activities of the coup plotters.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah revealed the full brief by state security agencies is what has been sifted and made public.

”My understanding of what the brief has shown is that they will now proceed to complete their investigations as they go ahead with these interrogations and then arraign these persons before the court and adduce the evidence to the court for the court to make a determination of these matters,” the Minister said.

Some three civilians are also in police custody for their roles in an elaborate plan to destabilise the state.

A joint security operation on Friday led to the retrieval of several arms, explosive devices and ammunition from locations in Accra and Kpone-Bawaleshie in Dodowa.

Personnel drawn from Defence Intelligence of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), conducted a successful operation which led to the arrest of three persons.

At the weapons manufacturing facility located inside the Citadel Hospital in Alajo, a suburb of Accra, the security agencies found the following:

- 5 x locally manufactured pistols with magazines fitted on;

- 1 x foreign pistol (Reg. No. PX154006) with 2 X magazines.

- 3 x locally manufactured pistol barrels.

- 3 x smoke grenades.

- 22 x Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

-  9 x 7.62mm NATO AK47 rounds.

- 2 x AK47 magazines.

- 1 x long Knife.

According to a government statement on the matter, the joint operation was to neutralise an elaborate plot targeted at the Presidency, and with the ultimate aim of destabilising the country.

The persons arrested are Dr Frederick Yao Mac-Palm and his two accomplices – Ezor Kafui (a local weapon manufacturer) and Bright Allan Debrah Ofosu (aka BB or ADC).”

The government statement also disclosed that Dr Mac-Palm, Mr Ezor and one soldier had test-fired some locally manufactured weapons at a beachfront in Accra before their subversive plan was foiled.

Caution

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said while the government was striving for transparency, it has also kept some information from the public because they border on national security.

I think we can all understand and respect the fact that not everything can be put in the public domain,” he said.

He said it was unfortunate that some persons sought to belittle the gravity of the of matter.

A former Colonel in the Ghana Armed Forces has doubted the credibility of the government’s claim that the three persons picked up were plotting to overthrow the government.

Festus Aboagye, who is also a security analyst, noted that considering the alleged evidence gathered during the arrest of the said persons, the government rather acted prematurely in concluding that they could be plotting to subvert the presidency.

The Minister’s reply such critics on the Super Morning Show on Tuesday morning was: “this is a very serious matter and it is what is we can put in the public domain that we share. What we need to do is to follow the guidance of the state security agencies that when you have any suspicions or evidence let’s make them available to them and let them act.

Listen to the Minister speak on the Super Morning Show.