A member of the Defence and Interior Committee of Parliament, Peter Toobu, has called on security agencies in the country to activate their intelligence network and aid Nigeria to capture its jailbreakers.
According to him, this is because insecurity in Nigeria is a threat to the peace and security in Ghana and the entire West Africa as a whole.
Speaking on Newsnight on Monday, Mr Toobu said that “security as we always say is a collective responsibility and terror attacks are just signs that the whole of West Africa is under threat. These jailbreaks have been happening often in Nigeria.
“But, it is not an immigration service matter alone. It is a matter for all the state security and intelligence agencies to rise up to the occasion and say ‘we have to help our Nigerian colleagues because insecurity in Nigeria is a threat to the peace and security of Ghana’,” he added.
This comes after the Ghana Immigration Service issued a red alert for the arrest of 443 inmates who escaped from the Kuje Maximum Security Prison in Abuja in Nigeria.
Out of the number are 64 Boko Haram suspects who were rescued by the Jihadists Group Boko Haram on Wednesday, July 6, 2022.
It said the suspects were expected to be running to neighbouring countries, including Ghana through both approved and non-approved routes.
Officials say the jailbreak was believed to have been orchestrated by the Group as high-end explosives and guns were used in the process that freed 64 of their members who were inmates at the prison in Abuja, Nigeria.
The alert, therefore, cautions the public to watch out for strange people with suspicious characters in their communities.
Meanwhile, Mr Toobu believes that it is essential for other security agencies and the populace to work hand in hand with the immigration service in securing the country.
He explained that although jailbreaks have been happening often, the fact that the recent one took place in a city like Abuja shows terrorists have become brave.
“They really don’t care. This is a sign that all of us in this country must rise up to the occasion. How many hours does it take to move from Abuja to Ghana? Within 24 hours anybody who wants to move from Abuja to Ghana whether through legal or illegal routes can get into this country,” he said.
Mr Toobu added that although the statement from the immigration service is timely, they need all the help they can get noting “this is a matter of national security.”
“Ghana should activate its security and intelligence network immediately to ensure that we come to the aid of our counterparts in Nigeria because the Nigerian problem is a Ghanaian problem, it’s a West African problem,” he said.