Dampare Removed As IGP, COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno Selected As Replacement
- Dr. George Akuffo Dampare has been removed from his position as Inspector General of Police (IGP)
- President John Dramani Mahama has appointed COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno to replace Dampare
- Yohuno was serving as the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of operations before his appointment
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President John Mahama has removed George Akuffo Dampare from his position as Inspector General of Police (IGP).
The president has appointed COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno as the new IGP.
Source: Facebook
Citi News reported that the swearing-in ceremony for the new IGP is scheduled for Friday, March 14.
Dampare was appointed as IGP in 2021 by President Akufo-Addo.
Yohuno was serving as the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of operations.
Ahead of this change in the leadership of the police service, policy think tank IMANI Africa and security analyst Professor Kwesi Aning sued to prevent Mahama from dismissing Dampare and other heads of security services.
The injunction, filed at the Supreme Court, seeks to challenge the President’s authority to terminate the appointment of key public officers without proven misconduct.
They are arguing that the removal of the IGP, along with other heads of uniformed security services, should only occur in cases of established misconduct or misbehaviour.
Lead researcher at Global InfoAnalytics, Mussa Dankwa, also advised against removing Dampare citing his popularity.
According to Dankwa, his performance and leadership skills have made him the most popular security chief in recent history.
In a Facebook post, he also called on the Supreme Court to expedite its ruling on the case.
“The Supreme Court reserves the right to decide which cases it must expedite for quick resolution. The application for a ruling on the removal of security heads by presidents, I would have thought, would have been deemed urgent due to the pending election, as a new government would require clarity on the matter before taking any action."
Dampare has however been heavily criticised for police conduct over his watch.
The police, for example, were accused of human rights abuses because of protestors being brutalised while demonstrating against President Akufo-Addo in 2023 and 2024.
Dampare was also at the centre of a probe into a leaked recording in 2023 which had officers lobbying for political support to remove him.
The leak also claimed that the Vice President at the time, Mahamudu Bawumia, disliked the IGP.
During the probe, COP Alex Mensah told the committee hearing the case that Dampare was the worst IGP in the history of Ghana.
“I can tell you that for the 31 years that I have been in the Police Service, this IGP is the worst IGP.”
Yohuno's police background
Yohuno was promoted to Commissioner of Police on January 1, 2016, by Mahama during his first term as president.
In January 2012, he was promoted to Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) and, earlier in 2011, awarded the Grand Medal for his meritorious service in combating armed robbery and other criminal activities in the country.
Source: Facebook
Before that, he was the Divisional Commander for Accra Central from November 2007 to May 2009, during which he also doubled as the Accra Regional Operations Commander.
He was later appointed Deputy Accra Regional Commander and rose to become the Regional Commander in 2013 until December 5, 2015, when he became the Director-General of the Motor Transport Traffic Department before a reshuffle that made him the Director General of Administration at the Ghana Police Service.
Yohuno was widely described as an officer in line to become an Inspector General of Police.
Yohuno sues Captain Smart for defamation
YEN.com.gh reported that Yohuno sued broadcaster Blessed Godsbrain Smart, popularly known as Captain Smart and Media General Limited for defamation.
Yohuno accused Captain Smart of defamation because he claimed some elements within the Ghana Armed Forces and that some officials of the Ghana Police Service were planning a coup d'état.
Captain Smart also alleged that Yohuno's appointment as Deputy IGP was politically motivated.
He also claimed Yohuno had been visiting the homes of National Democratic Congress (NDC) officials while allegedly holding membership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and paying them monies as a lobby to be appointed as IGP.
Yohuno is seeking general damages for defamation and an injunction to restrain Captain Smart from making further defamatory statements.
He also wanted an order for a retraction and apology.
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Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
Delali Adogla-Bessa (Head of Current Affairs and Politics Desk) Delali Adogla-Bessa is a Current Affairs Editor with YEN.com.gh. Delali previously worked as a freelance journalist in Ghana and has over seven years of experience in media, primarily with Citi FM, Equal Times, Ubuntu Times. Delali also volunteers with the Ghana Institute of Language Literacy and Bible Translation, where he documents efforts to preserve local languages. He graduated from the University of Ghana in 2014 with a BA in Information Studies. Email: delali.adogla-bessa@yen.com.gh.
Samuel Gitonga (Copy editor) Samuel Gitonga is a Copy Editor at YEN.com.gh. He holds a Bachelor of Broadcast Journalism Degree from the Multimedia University of Kenya. He has over 7 years’ experience in the digital journalism industry. He started out his career at the Kenya News Agency and proceeded to work for several reputable media outlets in Nairobi.
