3 Infantry Battalion

Profile of Commanding Officer

Lt Col Michael Naah was enlisted into the Ghana Military Academy in October 2007 as an Officer Cadet of RCC 49. He was commissioned a Lieutenant on 4 September 2009 and posted to 3 Bn as a Platoon Commander. He has completed all mandatory military courses commensurate with his rank. Notable among these were the Young Officers Course, the Combat Team Commanders Course, the Junior Staff Course, Senior Command and Staff Course, and the Battalion Commanders' Course. Furthermore, significant among other military certificates received include the Military Intelligence Operations from Egypt and Strategic Intelligence Leadership from the USA Defence Intelligence Academy. Others are Disarmament, Demobilization Reintegration (DDR), Civil Military Relations, Information Analysis, and the Prevention of Violent Extremism and Terrorism certificates from Sweden and USA respectively.

Having served in 3 Bn as a Platoon Commander, Intelligence Officer and Officer Commanding, a decade of Lt Col Naah's military career has been within the intelligence branches of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF). He served with the Department of Defence Intelligence (DI) for almost a decade and later the G2 Branch at the Army HQ. While at Army HQ, he was also attached to the National Security Council Secretariat as a Staff Officer to the Joint Operations Committee. Until his appointment as CO 3 Bn, he was a Directing Staff at the Army Combat Training School and the Course Commander for Combat Team Commanders' Course 1-25.

Lt Col Naah holds a Master of Science Degree in International Security from the Paris School of International Affairs (France) and the Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (USA). He also holds a Commonwealth Executive Master in Public Administration from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana. Additionally, he holds a Master of Arts Degree in Defence and International Politics from the Ghana Armed Command and Staff College.

Prior to his postgraduate studies, he graduated with a first-class honours from the University of Ghana, Legon, attaining a BA degree in Psychology (Major) and Political Science (Minor). The senior officer is also a resource person to the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Institute for Security Studies Africa (ISS), the Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). He is a member of the International Association of Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysts, USA.

Brief History of 3 Infantry Battalion

The Elements That Formed The Third Infantry Battalion Were Raised At Akwatia In Mid August 1939. The Nucleus Of The Battalion Was Composed Of Cadres From The 2nd Battalion Of The Gold Coast Regiments (Now 2nd Infantry Battalion). Majority Of The Troops Were Nevertheless Called From The Nearby Diamond Mines. Most Of The Elements That Formed The Nucleus Of The Battalion Thus 2nd Battalion Of The Gold Coast Regiment, Took Part In The Following Campaigns:

• Ashanti — 1873 – 1874
• Ashanti — 1900
• Duala & Cameroons — 1914 – 1916
• Narugumbe, Kamina & East Africa — 1916 – 1918

Evolution

In October 1939 The Battalion Subsequently Moved To Winneba For Concentration And Training In Preparation For Move To East Africa. In East Africa The Battalion Formed Part Of The 2nd Gold Coast Brigade Which Counteracted The Intransigence Of The Italians For A Little Over Fourteen Months. In The Process The Battalion Took Part In Other Campaigns Including The Assaults Of Abbysinia And Uaddara. The Battalion Then Returned To The Gold Coast (Now Ghana) In November 1941 And Was Stationed At Abasi Near Ejisu And Subsequently Moved To Tamale The Following Year. The Battalion Was Part Of The Force That Opposed The Vichy French In The Frontiers Of The Gambia Still As Part Of 2nd Gold Coast Brigade. After A Successful Campaign In The Gambia, The Battalion Returned Once More To The Gold Coast In March 1943 And Was Stationed At Kintampo In The Brong Ahafo Region.

In 1943 The Battalion Again Moved To Nigeria To Prepare For The Burma Campaign. In April 1944, The Battalion Was On The Move Again To India As Part Of The 82nd West Africa Division In The Campaign Against The Japanese In Burma Between October 1944 And The Latter Part Of 1945. On Return Of The Battalion From The Second World War, It Was Immediately Disbanded In July 1945 To Be Reformed In Kumasi In June 1949. Since 1949 The Battalion Had Moved Round All The Stations (Now Garrisons) In Ghana. The Battalion Served With The UN Peace-Keeping Force In The Congo Leopoldville During The Crisis In That Country In 1960. After This Operation The Battalion Was Once Again Disbanded In 1961. Again The Battalion Was Formed In Tamale On 1st October 1962 With Lt Col JTD Addy As The CO. After The Overthrow Of The Nkrumah Regime In 1966, The Unit Moved To The Liberation Barracks In Sunyani And Has Remained In This Barracks Ever Since.

Identity

The Wearing Of Muffler In The Unit Was Initiated In 1968 At The End Of A 130 Km Walk For Which Soldiers Who Completed The Course Were Given A Certificate And The Yellow Mufflers As A Morale Booster Under The Leadership Of Lt Col Twum-Barimah The Then CO. By That Presentation The Unit Became The First To Wear Muffler In 2 Bde Group. The Unit Adopted The Scorpion As Its Logo After Its Tour Of Duty In Liberia As ECOMOG GH2 Under The Command Of Lt Col JB Danquah. The Liberia Operation Saw The Unit Engaged In Serious Combat With Rebels In The Countryside As Well As In Built-Up Areas. The Crest Was Designed In Lebanon And Approval Was Given By The Then Army Commander For The Unit To Adopt.

Peacekeeping Operations

Apart From United Nations Operations In The Congo, The Battalion Has Undertaken A Number Of Peace-Keeping Operations. These Include:

• United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) Ghanbatt 3 With HQ At Camp El Fanara — CO: Lt Col WA Thompson
• United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) Ghanbatt 10 In The Sinai With HQ At Mitla Camp — CO: Lt Col Seidu Ayumah
• UNIFIL Ghanbatt 29 With HQ At Marakah — CO: Lt Col TE Nguah (1987/88)
• ECOMOG GH2 With HQ At Baptist Seminary (1990/91)
• UNIFIL Ghanbatt 36 With HQ At Marakah — both commanded by Lt Col JB Danquah
• UNAMIR Ghanbatt 1 With HQ At Byumba And Later Gikongoro
• ECOMOG Ghanbatt 11 With HQ At Buchanan — both commanded by Lt Col JN Adinkrah
• UNIFIL Ghanbatt 49 With HQ At Al Qaranis — CO: Lt Col M Owusu-Ababio
• UNAMSIL Ghanbatt 5 With HQ At Kenema — CO: Lt Col RK Opoku-Adusei
• UNIFIL Ghanbatt 60 With HQ At Tibnin — CO: Lt Col A Abu
• MONUC Ghanbatt 11 With HQ At Kinshasa — CO: Lt Col MA Amoah

In Recognition Of The Spectacular Performance Of Ghanbatt 1 UNAMIR During The Rwandan Civil War (9 Feb – 30 Nov 1994), Maj Gen HK Anyidoho — who was the Deputy Force Commander UNAMIR and later Comd 2 Inf Bde Gp — undertook to personally finance the construction of a Peace-Keeping Monument at Liberation Barracks. The Monument Was Unveiled On 8 April 1997.