Intelligence leaks could jeopardise Ghana’s international security cooperation

Peter Lanchene Toobu, Vice Chairman of Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee, has warned that leaks of sensitive intelligence could undermine Ghana’s security operations and international intelligence-sharing arrangements.

The Wa West MP said intelligence becomes particularly vulnerable when information provided for an operation is accurate but the operation subsequently fails.

“Intelligence is vulnerable from operational successes. So if intelligence is shared and the operation fails, there is likely to be a leakage,” Toobu said on Citi News Digest on Saturday, September 19.

He said security agencies must strengthen internal controls and ensure that officers who compromise sensitive information are held accountable under the law.

“When we trace and get people who are within that chain causing the trouble, we’ll deal with them according to the law,” he said.

“The fact that you are an intelligence officer, the fact that you are wearing a uniform, doesn’t mean that you can also commit a crime. The law is on your side for you to enforce the law. But if you abuse the law, the same law will have to deal with you.”

His comments come amid investigations into recent narcotics trafficking cases involving consignments linked to Ghana, including the seizure of 3.9 tonnes of cocaine in France.

Mr Toobu said Ghana could draw on international best practices to strengthen its intelligence systems and protect information shared among security agencies and foreign partners.

“We need to catch up with them,” he said, referring to criminal networks that he said were continually adapting their methods.

He also called for greater investment in technology, ports and border security, as well as increased recruitment and training for the Narcotics Control Commission.