A handing and taking over ceremony has been held to mark the change of command between the outgoing and incoming Commanding Officers (CO) of 5 Battalion of Infantry (5 BN), Colonel (Col) Prince Tandoh and Lieutenant Colonel (Lt Col) Kwame Owusu Afriyie, respectively.

The ceremony took place at the Bale Baz Square at the Arakan Barracks in Burma Camp on Thursday 9 November 2023 and was characterized by a pulling out ceremony which signified the end of an era and the beginning of another.

The Guest of honor for the ceremony, General Officer Commanding (GOC) Southern Command, Brigadier General (Brig Gen) Samuel Asare in congratulating Col Tandoh for his services to the Unit, commended the outgoing CO for significantly improving upon the living and working conditions of troops by completing numerous projects. He urged the outgoing CO to continue to excel and make the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) proud.

GOC, also congratulated the Lt Col Owusu Afriyie on his new appointment and encouraged him to do his best to improve upon the standards that has been set by his predecessor. He reminded the new CO that there was leadership without challenges, therefore, GOC urged Lt Col Owusu Afriyie to always coordinate with his staff at the headquarters, other commanding officers and key appointments in the resolution of difficult issues.

Brig Gen Asare entreated all Officers, Soldiers and Defence Civilian Staff of the Unit to support the new CO and make sure he succeeds.

Col Tandoh, was grateful to have served as Commanding Officer of 5BN. He disclosed that he took over command of the Unit with the mission of maintaining a highly robust, motivated and well-trained soldiers with a winning attitude in other to achieve the end state of High Command.

He mentioned that during his tenure of office, areas such as Prampram, Ningo, Ablekuma, Adenta, Kasoa and Oyibi saw a reduction in the menace of armed robbery and land guard activities.

He expressed his appreciation to God, Military High Command and benefactors for helping in the achievement of projects such as the construction of a 13 single room self-contained accommodation unit for young Officers, Regimental Sergeant Majors (RSM), renovation of 7 dormitories, construction of unit washing bay, construction and furnishing of a new conference hall and many others.

Col Tandoh congratulated the incoming CO and admonished him to improve upon the standards he has set and take a key interest in the training and welfare of troops. He also urged troops of 5 BN to be loyal to their new Commanding Officer.

Lt Col Kwame Owusu Afriyie in his remarks expressed appreciation to the Military High Command for the appointment and reiterated his loyalty to GAF. He pledged to continue to be fair and impartial to everyone he works with. He requested all to give him the same support given to his predecessor to keep the flag high.