Politics of Thursday, 24 December 2020

Source: peacefmonline.com

Kweku Baako jabs NDC Minority for 'walking' to EC to present petition

Some Minority MPs marching to the EC headquarters Some Minority MPs marching to the EC headquarters

Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide, Kweku Baako Jnr has jabbed the Minority in Parliament over their walk to present a petition to the Electoral Commission (EC) on Tuesday, December 23, 2020.

The Minority held a procession to the EC headquarters with a four-paged petition but were impeded by the Police securing the premises.

The incident turned confrontational between the Minority and the Police.

In a video that has since gone viral, the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu was heard hollering that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) won't rule forever.

"Let me send a strong warning to the police that the New Patriotic Party government will not rule Ghana forever,” he fumed.

When asked why they failed to pre-inform the Police in accordance with the Public Order Act, the Minority Leader is quoted as saying they embarked on a walk and not protest, to wit there was no need informing the Police.

But seasoned journalist Kweku Baako has dissented to the Minority's claim that they were going for a walk.

To him, the Minority classifying their activity as a walk is absurd.

Speaking to host Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo," Mr. Baako said; "If I wake up and decide to do my jogging and walking around, it's true; that's legitimate. It doesn't come under the Public Order Act.

But if a mass of people, in this case, dignified people - Members of Parliament - decide to mass up and to take a walk to a public place which is also defined in the Public Order Act, what did they go there to do? To present a petition... and in the process, you could hear the leader doing some statements and announcements there, isn't it? They want us to go to court to ask the court to define to us what a walk in this sense [context] means. This is a mass of people, dignified though they are, undertook a mass walk to a public place to present a petition that makes some demands.



"...in their own collective interest, that notification would have been useful. Because, you see, in this charged environment, allegations of fraud, stolen verdict, all that and things; in your own interest, protection, security, your safety and your critical human resource of the nation, Members of Parliament and in this charged environment, you think that [oh] just interpret it as a mere walk... I think that, on a balance, the Police behaved...because you can't come and tell me that this was a walk."

In his view, the NDC is up to one thing and that is "Agenda Parliamentary Majority," hence their action on Tuesday.

"To be honest with you, the whole thing is simple. It's 'Agenda Parliamentary Majority' by all means and at all cost. It's all targeted at what is happening in Parliament, the closeness of the Parliamentary representation, the agenda to elect a Speaker, Deputy Speakers and it's obvious that they've given up the Presidential."