1960 bomb throwers must own up - Addae-Amoako

A former National Organiser of the erstwhile People's National Party (PNP) on Monday called on the government not to restrict the period that the national reconciliation exercise would cover.

Mr Samuel Addae-Amoako, who returned recently from exile, told a news conference in Accra that; "as a CPP activist, I will be glad that those who organised the bombing campaign in the 1960s could own up and be forgiven by the entire state of Ghana."

"I am on the side of those who are campaigning for no restriction on the period that the exercise should cover but I do not believe reconciliation means we should throw our hands in despair and allow atrocious laws smuggled into the constitution to tie our hands," he added.

Mr Addae-Amoako also urged the Kufuor Administration to set up the necessary mechanism for the removal of the Transitional Provisions that, he said, had no place in the constitution and that it was based on libertarian values.

He said the provisions were a complete hindrance to the effective practice of democracy and an affront to "our willingness to give ourselves a constitution guaranteeing freedom and the liberty of the Ghanaian."

"The whole nation, I believe will support the government at the referendum. We cannot continue to be bonded by those who came by arms and misdirected our destiny in the course of which they enriched themselves at the expense of honest government founded on integrity."

The former PNP leading member also cautioned the NPP government to be wary of the many minefields associated with power. "Never again should this nation fall into the pit of disorder and arbitrary rule and plundering of state resources."

Mr Addae-Amoako also stated that most of the ministers of Ex-President Hilla Limann were highly incompetent and dishonest to hold public office. "I personally complained to the president on several occasions and made a submission at the party's congress for their removal but the government failed to act."

Mr Addae-Amoako who, many political analysts believe laid the foundation for the overthrow of the Limann regime with his court action against the party, said his action was to deal with dishonesty.

"It was to deal with the dishonesty on the part of some leading members of the PNP that I took court action against the National Chairman, the late Nana Okutwer Bekoe III, Acting General Secretary Professor Ivan Addae-Mensah, and the late Kofi Batsa, Chairman of the Publicity Committee."

He said the court gave a settlement judgment in which the party structures were clearly defined.