Bugri Naabu drags Akufo-Addo into leaked IGP tape

Former Northern Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. Daniel Bugri Naabu on Monday appeared before the Seven-Member Parliamentary Committee probing the authenticity of a leaked tape orchestrating the removal of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare.

The NPP stalwart, who is a key-actor in the controversial tape, admitted before the committee that the voices were authentic contrary to his earlier rebuttal when the matter first broke out.

“Yes, my voice is there”, he responded to the Chairman of the committee, Samuel Atta Akyea when asked if he was connected with the tape.

Why tape recorded was recorded

Explaining the circumstances under which the recording was done, Mr. Bugri Naabu revealed that the seriousness of allegations made by the police officers in an attempt undermine the authority of the IGP.

“Commander Asare said the IGP is not with the Government or the NPP, and if we want to use the IGP for 2024 elections, we cannot ‘break the eight’ because this IGP will let us lose the election because he is an NDC (sympathiser).

“This is because the IGP was promoted so many times during the NDC era, still goes for NDC meetings and former President John Mahama has promised to maintain him if he (Mahama) wins the 2024 elections,” he said.

According to him, he wanted to put them on record in order to easily recollect what they said and approach the appropriate authorities in order to make an informed decision.

“I was so disappointed and so I decided that I need to get the information properly, and the proper way was to look for a tape recorder to tape all that we have been discussing so that when I send it to the President or anybody, they cannot deny it or that somebody will think that I am concocting this.

“We, chiefs, do not like lies because if I tell a lie, I will die. So, the truth of this is that the tape is correct,” he said.

Recording Meant for Akufo-Addo

He told the Committee that after the recording, he handed it over to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo because he did not want to create doubt over what the police officers had claimed.

The Namong Lana II told the committee that he was afraid of his inability to recall the juicy details of what he was being told by the police officers and so decided to record and when he is granted the audience of the President he could play it to him.

“You know the President, if I go and meet him and tell him this is what I heard and he does get any evidence he may not believe me. So I recorded it so that if I met him and I asked, he would play it for him”, he revealed to the committee.

Contracted someone to record

It also emerged that someone he failed to name was contracted to record the conversation with his guests that finally got leaked.

He told the committee that he assigned someone, to set up the recording device in view of the seriousness of the claims made by the police officers.

“I asked someone to set up the device for me which I bought from Accra Mall. He set up the device which looks like a phone for the recording so I could in turn play it to the President”, he revealed.

Mr. Bugri Naabu also revealed that he does not record conversations of people he comes into contact with adding that the recording was meant to protect the party.

Questioned if he leaked the tape, Mr Naabu said he never gave out the tape to anyone except the President.

He, therefore, expressed surprise to hear the content of the tape which had been leaked to the press, saying “I did not leak out the tape”.

Curious to know who might be behind the leak, he said, he called Commander Asare several times but he refused to answer his calls.

He, however, said Commander Asare later sent a text message through “my son that he would deal with me”.

Names Senior Police Officers

Mr Naabu named the people as Commander Asare and Commissioner of Police (COP) Mensah, two senior police officers who were based at the Police Headquarters.

He said COP Mensah was currently on leave prior to retirement from the Ghana Police Service.

Asked if he had met the two officers prior to the conversation, Mr Naabu said he did not know them.

He, however, told the committee that prior to the Assin North by-election on June 27, 2023, one of his sons told him that one police officer wanted to meet him (Mr Naabu) at his office for reasons he did not know.

He said later on, Commander Asare went to Mr Naabu’s house to introduce himself as a police commander, and wanted him (Mr Naabu) to talk to the President over concerns about the IGP.