NDC Endorses Rawlings' Decision to Stay Mute

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) says it endorses the decision of ex-President Jerry John Rawlings "not to make any further public comment on the matter of his address at the June 4 lecture.

A statement signed by Alhaji Huudu Yahyah, General Secretary of NDC, on Sunday said the speech delivered by ex-President Rawlings to commemorate the 22nd anniversary of the June 4 1979 uprising, was never meant to incite any group of Ghanaians.

It said it was unfortunate that "some of the reactions to the speech, especially those from members of the ruling government and some sections of the media have generated more heat than light".

It said while the form in which ex-President Rawlings made his observations may have been objectionable to some, "his statements did not amount to incitement or a call to arms, nor were they so intended as the government wants the public to believe".

It said according to the ex-President, "he has had occasion in the past to advise President Kufuor to have his own ears to the ground in order to know the real feelings of Ghanaians and not to take loyalty and respect for granted".

The statement said this was the context in which ex-President Rawlings made reference to the well-known Ghanaian phrase, "fun fool respect".

It said ex-President Rawlings has in several speeches over the years, "stressed on the potential dangers of governing through fear and intimidation", which often degenerates into hatred against a government, "a situation that gave rise to June 4 1979 Uprising itself."

It said this again was the context in which he advised the government against some of its actions that are already breeding fear and resentment.

It cautioned the NPP government against its tendency to invoke the spectre of a coup d' etat in the making, whenever they are subjected to public criticism and to be wary of false alarmists, since they create a feeling of instability in the country.

The statement noted that the greatest dangers to governments in the developing world is not coup d'etats, but mass unrest and discontent with grinding poverty, abuse of executive authority as well as excessive show of political power.

It, therefore, advised the NPP government to show restraint and use its mandate to promote the economic well being of the Ghanaian.

It said the NDC was willing to help reduce the "current political tension in the country".