STATEMENT READ HON JAMES VICTOR GBEHO IN RESPONSE TO FALSEHOODS ABOUT FORMER PRESIDENT RAWLINGS¹ TRIP TO THE AKWASIDAE AND OTHER MATTERS

Ladies and gentlemen of the media we have invited you here today because the Office of Former President Rawlings has noted with concern a calculated attempt by the New Patriotic Party and its operatives to create an atmosphere of disaffection towards the former President through intimidation, falsehoods and outright attacks.

Over the past few days a series of events have led us to believe that the NPP in its desperate desire to cling onto power through crooked means has decided to divert the attention of the electorate from their own weaknesses by spreading falsehoods and attacking the former President and his team either physically or verbally.

GOLDEN TULIP INCIDENT

The attack on the photojournalist on the former President¹s entourage to Kumasi last Sunday is one case in point.

Babs Hammer was assaulted by the security detail and policemen accompanying the NPP Presidential candidate and later dumped at the Buffalo Unit of the Kumasi Central Police station.

Babs was hit with the butt of the rifle and severely beaten before being dumped at the Buffalo Unit. But in a bizarre twist of the facts no other person than the Ashanti Regional Police commander rather stated that Babs was assaulted by sympathisers of the New Patriotic Party who questioned why he was taking shots of their Presidential candidate without permission.

We wonder whether such a person is even fit to be a policeman when he makes infantile statements such as these and goes further to state that Babs can be prosecuted for taking shots of Nana Akufo-Addo.

Babs was a victim of an unfortunate sequence of events. He was doing what most press cameramen do when they are covering a revolving story. They take shots of scenery etc to embellish the final output.

Former President Rawlings had arrived at the hotel about 20 minutes before the Akufo-Addo entourage budged in an intimidating manner. He continued to do his work irrespective of the presence of the Akufo-Addo team because nothing stops him from taking shots at a public place such as the Golden Tulip and indeed it was even more relevant to take shots when a public figure was around.

Attacking him and destroying his filming equipment was a criminal act that infringes on his basic rights and as a professional photojournalist. He did not act in an intimidating manner and could not have possibly done so when he was surrounded by heavily armed policemen.

Incidentally it was not only Babs who was assaulted. One Williwise K. Dewude a driver, whose boss was lodging at the hotel. When he arrived at the hotel reception and saw Babs being beaten he asked the assailants to exercise restraint but some of them pounced on him and assaulted him. ³I had to escape as I feared for my life,² he told our officers who spoke to him today.

We are contemplating taking legal action against the police for their assault on Babs and are happily looking forward to the threat of prosecution by the Ashanti Regional Police Commander because Babs took shots of Nana Akufo Addo.

Is it not laughable for a senior police officer to question a media man¹s right to take shots of a public official at a public place? One wonders when this edict by DCOP Opare Addo became law in Ghana.

AKWASIDAE FESTIVAL

In the most twisted rendition of facts an incident at the Akwasidae celebration in Kumasi of the same day has turned into a farce in which a bodyguard of the former President is reported to have pulled out a pistol in a bid to attack President Kufuor.

The correct facts of the matter are that when the entourage of the former President arrived at Manhyia they first went to greet Otumfuo Osei Tutu II after which the Otumfuo delegated one of his secretaries to lead the delegation to go and greet other sub chiefs and dignitaries including President Kufuor and Nana Akufo-Addo.

As the entourage, which included Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, Admiral Owusu Ansah and Nii Laryea Afotey Agbo, approached the area where NPP dignitaries including Nana Akufo Addo, Alan Kyeremateng and Yaw Osafo Marfo were seated an unidentified security operative bumped violently into the group nearly knocking down Mrs. Rawlings but for the timely reaction of other members of the entourage.

Surprised at what happened Mrs. Rawlings decided to wait for the husband to conclude the process without her but she was impressed upon by former President Rawlings to join him. As she did another person kicked her, this time more violently but she went ahead to join her husband to greet the NPP officials including President Kufuor.

Amanor who was behind the group was accosted by four police officers who gripped him violently and frisked him. Noticing that he had a pistol in a holster one of them attempted to forcibly remove it but Amanor realising that the pistol could cock and go off if it was forcibly removed lifted up his shirt and opened the holster to allow for an easy removal by the officers. Immediately it was removed the officers screamed that he had a gun and raised an alarm as if the weapon had been brandished or even removed by Amanor.

The officers then attempted to physically remove him from the premises but Amanor freed himself asking them why they had to do that when he was carrying a legally registered pistol.

After creating enough of a scene the policemen then left Amanor alone. He was later to be accosted by DCOP Opare Addo, Ashanti Regional Police Commander ostensibly to arrest him but members of the former President¹s entourage impressed upon him to do the right thing and officially address the former President if he wanted to arrest a member of his entourage. Amanor¹s pistol is still with the police and is yet to be recovered.

It is very surprising that news is making the rounds that Amanor pulled his pistol. One wonders why someone who has seventeen years of military service in the Ghana Army will draw out a weapon in the midst of heavily armed presidential security operatives. He would have been signing his death warrant if he had done so and secondly if he drew out a pistol with ill-intent, how was he dispossessed of the weapon without it being fired?

President Rawlings¹ security detail have comported themselves under more threatening circumstances and not once has a weapon been drawn. It is indeed a wonder that anyone would expect that a weapon would be drawn out by one of them at such an august ceremony as the Akwasidae. Those who have in the name of politics decided to sully the sanctity of this religious event should bow their heads in shame.

SMSES & EMAILS

Another desperate ploy by the NPP is the sending of false messages ostensibly from the former President or Professor Atta Mills confirming that the NDC cheated in the last election or asking the electorate to vote for Nana Akufo-Addo.

Such cheap antics will do the NPP no good so they better go to the electorate and make more impossible promises. One such message states:

³I want to thank you cadres for the good job you did as electoral officers and polling agents. The NPP has by now known our ways of out-smarting them in the multiple ballot giving, finger printing their ballot paper to get them rejected, your multiple counts in our favour, permitting voters without ID to vote in the Volta Region, your winning NPP agents on our side and your perfect infiltration of NPP ranks as polling agents. We will have to use new ways and means on 28th to take away the maximum number of Akufo-Addo votes. Our target areas are the North, Central and Volta. We must win by any means so we can deal with the NPP. God Bless. JJ²

This message was never sent by former President Rawlings but by national security operatives who believe that such stupid messages will sway the minds of a determined electorate who have already decided on whom to vote for. In the first place if the former President presided over such electoral fraud will he be so daft as to send smses out when it could expose him? Why the New Patriotic Party assumes that Ghanaians have become so unintelligent is such a source of wonder. Quick reductions in fuel prices, spreading of falsehoods and direct attacks on personalities have all gone to expose their deviousness and further convinced the electorate that it is time to boot them out.

Attempts to coerce the former President to directly enter this dirty mudslinging game will not work. We know the tricks of the NPP. Their dour, uncharismatic leader cannot believe that his life-long desire to become President is slipping from his hands. Instead of looking into the mirror and asking himself what went wrong he has resorted to dirty tricks and continues to put up a sickening arrogant posturing as if he is already president.

Is it not sad that even though he was present when Babs Hammer was being assaulted he made no effort to stop those goons from misbehaving and has since then not even shown any sign of commiseration? Can this man become President of all Ghanaians?

Former President Rawlings ensured that the current political dispensation was not derailed when in 2000 he peacefully handed over power to John Agyekum Kufour. He even invited the President elect to the Castle days before he took over the reigns of government to begin consideration of the transition.

Former President Rawlings has been attacked relentlessly, illegally stripped of his diplomatic privileges, persecuted, called a liar and a thief, but throughout Ghana the party he founded is as popular as ever. If after eight years they have not been able to dim the light of Jerry Rawlings does NPP believe they can do so in a couple weeks?

We caution all Ghanaians to be very watchful of the machinations of the NPP because they will stop at nothing to cling onto power. Let us not allow them to manipulate the process or us. We should be vigilant and vote wisely for the NDC come December 28.

Ladies and gentlemen of the media, thank you.