Soldier told me "Your Jesus is in my pocket"

Sekondi, Aug. 12, GNA - A 71 year-old-woman, Madam Rebecca Eshun on Tuesday narrated before the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) at Sekondi, how in 1982, soldier at Jaway Wharf rounded up her with other traders, locked them up in a room and seized all the money they had on them.

Madam Eshun said it was the second incident she had encountered in the hands of soldiers within two months and while she was wailing and praying for Jesus to deliver them, one of the soldiers came to tell her that her Jesus was in his pocket.

She was taken from the others and sent into a toilet where she was locked up for about one hour before being sent to join them again. She said when they were rounded up, the soldiers ordered them to put all the monies they had into a big basket that they placed at the centre of the room and when it was full they covered the basket before carrying it away.

Madam Eshun said she had gone to borrow 500,000 cedis to start trading after soldiers had seized 500 bags of cement two months earlier from her store at Takoradi. "I became so worried that I began to call the name of Jesus."

In the first incident, according to her, three armed soldiers one morning went to her store at old John Sarbah Road in Takoradi and ordered that all her consignment of cement that she had taken delivery from Ghacem, be loaded into a truck and sent to the Airforce Station.

Madam Eshun said the cement was sold to the public and when her grandson, one Lutherodt, went to ask for the proceeds, he was mercilessly assaulted, resulting in his death a few months later. She said at the Airforce Station, she and other traders, including some men were detained in one cell for three days without food before they were released and told to report at the station every morning. She said she had become a pauper living on charity and therefore, prayed that the Commission would recommend compensation for her because she had no one to care for her.

Another witness Mr Jacob Kofi Twintoh, who was represented by James Awotwe Dadson, his son, told the Commission that his nephew, Kwadwo Damoah was shot and killed by a policeman in February 1992 for allegedly being a galamsey operator at Eguafo in the Central Region. He said Damoah was known to be a tomato farmer and not a galamsey operator as alleged.

Witness said Damoah was shot twice with a pistol by Assistant Superintendent of Police, T.T. McCarthy at the back and it was the second shot that sent him sprawling and that he died on the way to hospital.

Mr. Dadson said even though the police administration promised to give some form of assistance to the family during the burial of Damoah, they failed to honour the promise, and no compensation was paid either. He said, ASP McCarthy was said to have been interdicted, but it was later found out that he was transferred to Koforidua to continue working.

He said petitions were sent to the Attorney General's Department and the Inspector General of Police, "but these efforts yielded nothing."

Mr Damoah said the deceased was the breadwinner of the family and his untimely death had brought a lot of hardships to the family. He therefore, asked for compensation from the government.

Madam Winifred Hagan, a former employee of the Ghana Commercial Bank, told the Commission of how her 14-year-old son Andrew William Hagan was shot dead by an officer of the Ghana Navy in January, 1983. She said one Mr Amissah, a neighbour, had gone to report to the Navy about the insolent behaviour of his own son, Papa Eygarkwa and asked that he should be disciplined.

The next morning the Navy Officer, armed with a pistol, arrived in the house and when Egyarkwa saw him, he tried to escape and when the Navy Officer fired, the bullets hit Hagan who was sweeping the compound. He died on the way to hospital.

Madam Hagan said initially, she was told that the case was being sent to a Sekondi circuit court but when she realised that it was being delayed, she went to the Attorney General's Department where she was told that the office had no papers with which to process the case for prosecution.

She said she supplied that office of a ream of typing papers but still the case was not sent to court. Madam Hagan also prayed the Commission to pay compensation to her as her husband also died out of sorrow two months after the incident. Madam Ama Otuwa, a trader at Sekondi, told the Commission of how her father Mr Ekow Pete and an uncle, Egya Kwesi Benson were picked at Asebu by soldiers stationed at the Central regional office at Cape Coast in 1966.

She said her father was not seen again alive.

She said her father was a well-to-do farmer and the only charge that was later reported to the family against him was that he had all lands in the area.

Madam Otuwa said two weeks after the soldiers came to pick them, they sent a message to the family that Mr Pete was dead and they should come for his body for burial.

The body was released to the family with the instructions that they should not make any "noise" else the soldiers would go to the town and fire them "one by one."

The family could not raise funds to pursue the case, she said, and added that no compensation had been paid to the family.

Mr. James Aboagye Nyamekeh, an exporter told the commission that his uncle Major Peter Nda-Cobbina (rtd) of the Ghana Armed Forces was sitting in front of his house at Mben near Ainyinase in the Western Region in 1985 when he saw three soldiers and a policeman exchanging words and beating a drivers mate in the vehicle on which they were travelling.

He said when the vehicle stopped in front of him, he tried to intervene, but a senior officer among the group, hit his neck with the butt of a gun.

Mr. Nyamekeh said his uncle collapsed and was bleeding but the group threatened to shoot anybody who came closer or attempted to send him to the hospital.

He said the group watched Nda-Cobbina for two-hours before they later reported the incident to the Half Assini Police, who collected the corpse.

Mr. Nyamekeh said though reports were made to the Police, nothing was done about the case and no compensation, was paid to the family or children of the deceased.

Mr. James Setz Cobbold, now unemployed told the Commission that soldiers caused the collapse of his transport and drinking bar business in 1979. He said he was working with the GNTC motors in 1979 and at the same time sold suiting materials on credit, to supplement his income and to accumulate funds for his transport business.

Mr. Cobbold said Mr. Seth Gyedu, who was also a transport owner, assisted him with loans and guaranteed loans to enable him to purchase all his four commercial and two private cars.

He said he was arrested in September 1979 by soldiers and driven to the Apremdo barracks where he was asked to remove his shoes, but before he could do so, soldiers led by one Kennedy started beating him and later locked him in a small cell.

Mr. Cobbold said at about 10 pm that day, he was again taken out of the cell, shaved and beaten for 10 minutes and sent back.

Mr. Cobbold said the following day, the soldiers took him out and placed the cork of a mineral bottle upside down on his head and gave a six inches cement block to hold in his hands.

Mr. Cobbold said the soldiers told him to change the block on his head if he felt tired but fearing the damage he might do to his head, held the block till they released him.

He said most of the detainees at the barracks were whipped in front of their visitors and could not count the number of lashes each received. "We were made to lie on our backs and stare at the sun for one hour daily at the Apremdo barracks".

Mr. Cobbold told the Commission that the soldiers seized three of his vehicles but they were returned to him in bad condition after the assets declaration committee had exonerated him.

He said he continued his drinking bar business but soon after the overthrow of Dr. Hilla Liman's administration, soldiers went to his bar, confiscated all the drinks and bottles and took them away.

Mr. Cobbold said he sold his house and palm plantation to defray his outstanding loans and pay his children's school fees.

Mr. John K. Prah, a former lotto receiver said three Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) officers arrested him in 1992 after burying his mother.

He said during those days, the Ahantaman Rural Bank was operating in his house so he called Police Sergeant Mensah who was on duty at the bank premises, to come and take the particulars of the men before he joined them.

Mr. Prah said he was driven in a Peugeot 404 vehicle to the BNI offices where he was interrogated from 12 noon to 1:00am for allegedly, being part of the group that killed Imoro Adams, an NDC ward chairman. He said he spent a day at the Naval base guardroom after the interrogation and later sent to the Sekondi Central Police station, where he met Chief Dagomba Amadu, Mr. Adams and Mr. Ato Smith, who were all in detention.

Mr. Prah said he spent 42 days at the Takoradi Police Cells and during the period, his 100-acre palm plantation was left unattended to and deteriorated.

Mr. John Ohene-Nyartwi, resident at Dompim, who was a security officer at the Osu Castle said during the 1966 coup, he was arrested by soldiers who drilled and tortured him. He said he and other prisoners were transferred to the Police headquarters in Accra and then to the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation area, where they saw injured soldiers and were again sent to the Accra Central Police Station.

Mr. Ohene-Nyartwi said he was sent to the Usher Fort Prison where he spent four months in detention, but his pension was paid to him though he worked for only 18 months.