Rawlings calls on NDC members to "clean the party"

Tamale (N/R), April 4, GNA - Former President Jerry John Rawlings has called on members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to use the forthcoming delegates congress to 93clean the party" to salvage its image.

Flt Lt Rawlings told a gathering of party supporters at the Jubilee Park in Tamale on Sunday that 93if the party executives and the government cannot perform, clean the party but do not desert the party because it belongs to you".

He claimed that party executives had disappointed as well as forgotten the supporters and were rather chasing monetary benefits and positions such as chairpersons of boards of public organisations, a situation which ran contrary to the principles of probity, accountability and justice upon which the NDC was founded. He said some people in leadership positions in the party and in government 93do not know where the party came from" and hence their behaviour, which was lowering the moral high-ground, for which most people knew the NDC.

Former President Rawlings arrived in Tamale on Saturday April 2, on a fact finding mission to unravel what motivated an angry mob to destroy the Northern Regional Secretariat of the NDC. The incident happened after an Accra fast track high court ruling on March 29, which acquitted and discharged 15 people standing trial for the murder of the late Ya-na Yakubu Andani II, Overlord of Dagbon. On April 2, he paid a courtesy call on the Regent of Gulpelgu in Tamale, Alhaji Abdulai Ziblim, and later inspected the razed NDC Regional Secretariat.

He said the failure of the government to successfully prosecute the Ya- Na murder case and bring justice to the people of Dagbon, made him appear like a liar in the eyes of both local and international observers.

Flt Lt Rawlings said if the killers of Ya Na and Issah Mobilah were not found, then 93all of us are no longer safe in the country". He said: 93The government missed a nice moment to impress Ghanaians," since it had not investigated the massive corruption, injustice amongst other acts that took place during the Kufuor administration to bring the perpetrators to book for Ghanaians to be happy.

Former President Rawlings reiterated: 93I have a detailed fact about the killing of the Ya Na" and promised to make it available at the appropriate time.

He commended the people for remaining calm after the unfortunate court ruling and called on them to continue to exercise restraint for peace to prevail in Dagbon.

Former President Rawlings also met Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama, member of the Andani family who called on the government do everything necessary to find the killers of the Ya- Na to bring justice to the people of Dagbon.

He said if the government was not prepared or willing to do that, the people of Dagbon were ready to go out themselves to seek the truth about who murdered the Ya- Na. 4 April 11