31st Dec. Casualties Revolt

…And Vow To Tell Ghanaians The Other Side & To Expose Rawlings’ Hypocrisy

Former President Jerry John Rawlings’ obsession with the celebration of the infamous December 31, 1981 Coup d'etat with pomp and pageantry on annual basis, would today be met with a revolt from the camps of the main political victims of the uprising - the Convention Peoples Party (CPP), and the Peoples National Convention (PNC) as the former intend to “expose the hypocrisy of President Rawlings and his NDC party”.

“We are going to tell Ghanaians the other side of the story”, stated the Communications Director of the CPP in an interview with The New Weekend Crusading GUIDE yesterday.

He said, a press conference is scheduled at the Head office of the CPP today at 10 am where the party National Chairman, Mr. Ladi Nylander is expected to address.

Although he declined to give details of the planned meeting, Mr. William Doworkpor observed that the 1981 coup by Mr. Rawlings and his Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), “was not necessary, unjustified and must be condemned by all well meaning Ghanaians”.

What was nauseating about the now annual ritual by the NDC, which turns out to be praise-singing activity of President Rawlings, according to Mr. Doworkpor, was that, “the purported conditions espoused by Mr. Rawlings as his reasons for the near-mutiny are still prevailing almost 30 years after the illegality”.

He wondered whether the prevailing economic difficulties the country is going through under the government of the NDC should “be a motivation for a soldier to pick up arms and overthrow President Mills”.

“I think Jerry John Rawlings and his NDC are taking Ghanaians for granted for the continuous celebration of such an illegality”, he added.

Bernard Mornah, the General Secretary of the PNC in a separate interview with this reporter yesterday, observed that the celebration of “the 1981 coup brings back sad memories of a dent in our quest for a democratic practice.”

“They (NDC) are not allowing the healing process to take its natural course”, he argued. The PNP was the political party hardest hit by the coup as the party was only 27 months in government under the leadership of Dr. Hilla Limann after going through general elections.

“The reasons adduced for the coup were flawed”, Mr. Mornah observed.

He indicated that although it had been the demand by some party members on the party Executives to organize annual programmes to condemn the coup and extol the virtues of Dr. Limann, the party hierarchy had kicked against it on the basis that “such an attempt would bring back sad memories of victims of the coup”.

Meanwhile, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) General Secretary, Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, is questioning the planned commemoration of the coup.

He argued that today’s celebration is a waste of public funds since public officers will be using state vehicles fuelled by the state to attend the celebrations.

Even more sickening, he said, was the fact that persons paid by the state will use the time they ought to have used to work for the state to go and commemorate Mr Rawlings’ act of treason.

It would be recalled that General Olusegun Obasanjo, a former Nigerian President, recently, cautioned Africa countries against the glamourisation of coup makers and called for total condemnation of any such unconstitutional takeovers of democratic governments.

He said such military adventurism was detrimental to any country’s development and growth, adding, “If a military officer wants to govern, he should resign his commission and seek for political power democratically.”

Gen. Obasanjo, who was speaking at the Ghana Military Academy (GMA) Golden Jubilee Panel Discussion in September in Accra, said “ANY MILITARY COUP IS UNACCEPTABLE AND WE MUST STOP GLAMORIZING THEIR ACTIONS.”

It is instructive to note that, at the time President Obasanjo was taking a swipe at coup makers, President Rawlings, was also present at the function and later on took group pictures with the former Nigerian leader.

Today’s event will be held at the Teachers hall in Accra to climax activities marking the celebration, and is under the theme: “Integrity for Sustainable Democracy”

A statement from the Office of the former President said the ceremony will be Co-Chaired by Dr Ahiawordor, a lecturer at the University of Ghana and Ebenezer Anowa, Tema East Constituency Chairman of the NDC.

Leading speakers will include Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings and former Minister for Health, Samuel Nuamah Donkor.

Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the ruling NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia has issued a press statement extolling the virtues of the revolution.

According to the statement,” The periods before the revolution of 31st December, 1981 could aptly be described as the dark days in Ghana as it was characterized by a near collapse of most state institutions, scarcity of basic necessities of life such as potable water, maize, sugar, rice, toilet roll among others for which people had to queue for long hours; and those who had access to them were the few privileged who were politically connected. It was a period where a few privileged greedy individuals took advantage of the system to hoard these basic necessities only to sell them later at cutthroat prices to those who could afford. Those were times many Ghanaians rarely afforded a meal a day”.

It continued in parts:“SO BADLY WAS THE COUNTRY BRUISED THAT IT ONLY BEGUN REGISTERING POSITIVE GROWTH FOLLOWING THE 1981, 31ST DECEMBER REVOLUTION. BEFORE THE 1981 REVOLUTION, GHANA WITNESSED ECONOMIC TURBULENCE WHICH WAS CAPTURED BY FLUCTUATING REAL GDP GROWTH AND REAL PER CAPITA GDP GROWTH RATE. REAL GDP AT THE TIME GREW AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF 0.81% PER ANNUM WHILE THE GROWTH OF REAL PER CAPITA GDP ON AVERAGE WAS -8.34%”.

“It was based on the same ideals of probity, accountability, freedom and justice that the National Democratic Congress was formed. It is for this reason for which it is acknowledged in the constitution of the NDC as a historic landmark”, the statement added.