Rawlings & NDC Top Brass Invited For Questioning

...some top Ashanti Region NDC members picked up...
Former President Rawlings has been invited by the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) in connection with statements he made at Kumasi on Friday. He is expected to report at the BNI offices at this morning. According to a local radio station - Joy FM - the ex-President is preparing to meet a panel of investigators at the BNI.
.... Others "Invited"...
The First Vice-Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Alhaji Huudu Yahaya has confirmed to Peace Fm that, he has been invited by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at the Police Headquarters in Accra. The invitation is believed to be in connection with an interview Alhaji Huudu Yahaya granted Peace Fm this morning, following the former president’s statements on the Kufour administration. Former President Jerry John Rawlings over the weekend delivered part three of the ‘boom’ series when he called on Ghanaians to use “unlawful order” to carry out positive defiance against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.

The First vice-chairman said, at about 2:30 p.m on Monday, he had a phone call from one superintendent Dogbey at the Police CID Headquarters, to appear before the CID at his own convenient time. He said though the questions he is to answer have not been made known to him, he would contact his counsel for advise.

Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports indicates that some top brass of the NDC in the Ashanti Region have been picked up by the security agencies for questioning. They include the Regional Chairman and his Vice, the Regional Women’s Organiser and the Regional Secretary.

An official at the NDC office in Kumasi, Mr Ohene Agyekum told a local radio station -Peace FM -that the above mentioned persons have been invited by the heads of the Ashanti Regional Police squad for questioning. However, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, when contacted refused to deny or confirm this story.

WHAT RAWLINGS SAID IN KUMASI

Former President Rawlings has called on Ghanaians to adopt positive defiance to halt what he describes as the rot of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration. Speaking at the inauguration of a regional working committee of the NDC Women’s wing in Kumasi, the former President described the Kufuor government as one of the worst in Ghana’s history.

He said the increasing suffering of the masses demands that Ghanaians find ways of resisting those in authority while they wait for the 2004 general elections.

There have been democratic governments from Nkrumah to Busia etc but I think this is the worse government Ghana has ever had. Ghana is a noble country, a very honest and principled country and she must be led by such principled people. Very soon, we will get to the year 2004 but the rate at which we are suffering can’t help this country. I wish we could find ways and means of preventing this rot from going further down while we wait for the next election.

We don’t have to wait for the next election to prevent the rot. There is something called unlawful order and we have to learn how not to accept wrong things from authority.

The former President dismissed allegations of frequent media report against his family and former government officials as a smear campaign. He threw a challenge to members of the NPP government to stay in the country when they are voted out of power.

"I hope that they will have the courage to stay as we have in this country. Lets hope that they don’t run away after accusing people of virtue. Since when did sincerity and nobility become a crime. Enye Fe."

A society that does not cherish the truth will go down. Lets take the necessary action to prevent any further rot so that after 2004, there will still be something left in this country. This sort of thing must stop. We must show intelligence to the people of the country.

On the Dagbon crisis, former President Rawlings hoped that the outcome of the Committee will ensure peace in the area. Let us hope that the Wuaku Commission will give the country justice as far as the beheading of the Ya Na is concerned.

If we don’t get Justice, there will be no peace in the country. Flt Lt Rawlings also accused the NPP of introducing partisanship into the district level elections.