Major General Bismarck Kwasi Onwona has replaced Major General Thomas Oppong-Peprah as the new Chief of Army Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces.
A handing over ceremony was held at the forecourt of the Odartey-Wellington Block of the Ghana Army Headquarters (AHQ), Burma Camp in Accra on Wednesday, January 31, 2024.
It was presided over by the Deputy Minister for Defence and Member of Parliament for Atwima-Kwanwoma, Kofi Amankwa-Manu.
Major General Onwona until his elevation to the Chief of Army Staff was the Commandant of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College.
In his farewell speech, the outgone Major General Oppong-Peprah who is now the Chief of Defence Staff, expressed gratitude to the President and Commander-in-Chief of Ghana Armed Forces, for his appointments, and thanked the Minister for Defence and the Chief of the Defence Staff, for guiding him to deliver results-driven leadership as a Service Commander of the GAF.
In his four years as the Army Commander, Major General Oppong-Peprah envisioned “To produce a highly motivated, well-trained and well-equipped Army with quality Officers and Soldiers to achieve the tasks of the Army”, with an attitude of “Teamwork makes the dream work”, and that in the face of the daunting obstacles, “There will always be a hundred and one reasons why something cannot be done, but there will also be that one reason why it must be done”.
His vision was driven by a strategy to Increase the Footprint of the Army across the country; Revamp and Modernize Manpower and Equipment; and Enhance Welfare of Personnel, with an end state to ensure a more capable Army, positioned to professionally support the Ghana Armed Forces deliver on its Constitutional Mandate.
