Assin South Member of Parliament and Ranking Member on the Defense and Interior Committee Rev. John Ntim Fordjour has harshly criticized President John Dramani Mahama’s radical restructuring of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), describing the action as “backward, costly, and far-fetched.”
He maintained that stability and experience should take precedence over sudden leadership changes that might undermine the institution in Ghana’s defense strategy.
In the reorganization, which was announced on Monday, March 17, 2025, the Chief of Defense Staff, the Chief of Army Staff, the Chief of Naval Staff, and the Chief of Air Staff were removed, along with 12 of the highest ranking officers, including 2-, 3-, and 4-star generals.
Ntim Fordjour cautioned in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that the removal of senior military leaders in large numbers would have a significant impact on the military’s morale and operational effectiveness.
He also emphasized the financial strain the action would put on the state, pointing out that many of the officers who were fired had up to six years left before they reached the required retirement age.
Ntim Fordjour also voiced worries that the reorganization would reduce military effectiveness, claiming that the chain of command would be weakened by substituting less experienced top officers with Brigadier Generals (1-star Generals).
“What this implies on the public purse is that gratuities will have to be paid running into millions of cedis due to the egoistic premature dismissals of senior ranked generals, replacing them with lower ranked Brigadier Generals and equivalent (1-star Generals) at the command of Ghana Armed Forces.
“Just when Ghana expanded its military might; upgrading key corps such as armour, artillery, signals and 48 Engineers to Brigade status thereby attaining 4-star General status for the Chief of Defence of Staff, Mahama has reset the top hierarchy back to 1-star General as Chief of Defence Staff. This reset is indeed backward, costly and farfetched,” part of his X post stated.
