Oye Lithur must resign for signing Montie 3 petition – Group

The Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur, must resign from her position following her decision to sign a petition to free the three jailed Montie FM contemnors who scandalised the Supreme Court and brought its name into disrepute, a women's group, Women of Faith and Substance, has said.

According to the women, not only did the contemnors – Alistair Nelson, Godwin Ako Gunn, and Salifu Maase, aka Mugabe – scandalise the court, but they also threatened the life of the Chief Justice, a situation which should have rather seen the Gender Minister commending the Supreme Court for handing down the custodial sentence to the trio.

Following their sentencing, supporters of the governing National Democratic Congress, ministers, and deputy ministers, groups, friends, and family have mounted pressure on President John Dramani Mahama to grant them pardon by invoking his prerogative of mercy powers under Article 72 of the 1992 Constitution.

Some of the prominent names to have signed the petition include Mrs Lithur, Minister of Education Prof Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang, Deputy Education Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Deputy Petroleum Minister Benjamin Dagadu, Deputy Minister of Communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu, among others.

But the women’s group said in a statement that Mrs Lithur’s involvement in the petition defeats the purpose of her position as a Gender Minister because she is supposed to protect women as part of her duties. “It goes without saying that the Chief Justice, Georgina Theodora Wood, has been left in the lurch by the very person whose duty it is to stand up and shield her from any attack that may emanate from a section of the public. The recent spate of attacks and threats on the very existence of the fourth most powerful personality in the country, and arguably, the most powerful woman around, have been treated with undeserved disdain by the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur”.

“It is needless for us to bombard Ghanaians once again with the hideously distasteful words employed by the incarcerated Montie gang to threaten the Chief Justice, but what we find extremely difficult to fathom is the failure of Oye Lithur, the woman charged with the responsibility of overseeing the interests of women, to not only condemn these never-ending attacks and threats on the Chief Justice, but also organise series of demonstrations with the sole intention to press home the ministry's aversion to such abhorrent behavioural attitudes. These core duties, strangely enough, have been overlooked by Nana Oye Lithur! The rather deafening silence of the gender minister in the face of these threats on the life of the CJ [Chief Justice] is puzzling, to say the least!

“In an ideal situation, these graphic descriptions and threats of mayhem on the life of the Chief Justice should have been ruthlessly tackled and dealt with, but for whatever reason, Nana Oye Lithur finds it ideal to offer protection for the criminals who nurtured these inhumane thoughts. Nana Oye Lithur, it could be recalled, issued a statement to publicly condemn and chastise Kennedy Ohene Agyapong [Member of Parliament for Assin Central] when he was alleged to have made a comment to the effect that the chairperson of the EC [Electoral Commission] couldn't have got her position based on competence but on another reason altogether. She went further to organise demonstrations against the Assin Central MP over the same issue. No sooner had this episode ended than the Montie gang threatened to rape and assassinate the Chief Justice, but Nana Oye Lithur has conveniently sidestepped this all-important matter, which has assumed international headlines.

“In her haste to criticise Kennedy Agyapong when he allegedly made comments which slighted the chairperson of the EC, Nana Oye Lithur had this to say: ‘Women of Ghana will not countenance such comments and personal attacks on women who have committed to serve Ghana in public office.’ Her reaction to these threats and attacks on these Justices of the Supreme Court is hypocritical.”

The women continued: “What we find disappointingly heartrending is the decision of the Gender Minister to sign for the release of the criminals who are hell-bent on eliminating the Chief Justice off the face of the earth. It is disgusting, putting it mildly, to see Oye Lithur displaying such an oafish posture, which is at variance with the advocacy she used to loudly and vehemently run for women before this position she occupies now. In our view, she has lost the moral authority to head the Gender Ministry with her conduct in this particular issue and must resign. Women of Faith and Substance use this medium to appeal to all women's groups to rally round the Chief Justice in these trying times. Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood needs our support and protection at a time the Mahama administration in general, and the Gender Minister specifically, have marooned her! We must not fail our fellow woman! Let's rise up and shield the Chief Justice now!”

They added: “While we fervently appeal to well-meaning Ghanaian women to solidarise with the Chief Justice and Justice Sophia Akuffo over these senseless attacks on their persons, we are seizing this opportunity to ask Oye Lithur to take a backseat as she has proven beyond reasonable doubt that she is a walking disaster being the woman in charge of such a sensitive [office]! She is too biased to hold such a post. In any serious jurisdiction, such a woman would have been sidelined from the corridors of power. Oye Lithur, bow out voluntarily if the president has no ba**s to do so!”