From Democratisation of Violence to Demonisation of Righteousness
The Supreme Court had been in the limelight recently when it ruled that our Canadian MP, Gyakye Quayson of Assin North, should continue to stay out of Parliament, as ruled by the High Court until the substantive case was over. This the NDC rose up against and started calling the Supreme Court, a den of criminals.
In the case of Parliamentary Elections Petitions, the law mandates the High Court to hear and rule on them. The Cape Coast High Court ruled that Gyakye Quayson was a Canadian at the time he filed to contest the elections.
The late Adamu Dramani Sakande of the NPP, suffered the same fate and he was sentenced to jail for perjury. While the NPP respected the decision of the court, the NDC would not comport themselves as such.
Earlier, the Supreme Court in another case ruled that in conformity with Article 1 (1) which states that the sovereignty of the country lies in the people, and since the people are represented by MPs in Parliament, deputy speakers of the House who are MPs in themselves, must vote on decisions when presiding over matters. This, too the NDC decided to demonise it.
Respectfully, who are the lawless group of people in this country? Which group has dismissed judges because they came out with unfavourable rulings? Which group has killed judges and which group is demonising judges who in the face of the law, ruled as they saw things?
Who are trying to make this country ungovernable by insisting that what they say is to be accepted and not what the Constitution and other laws say if they do not, please them?
It seems very obvious that the recent attacks on the Supreme Court by the NDC, is just for a number of ulterior motives.
Once Gyakye Quayson case has been settled and the High Court’s verdict on it is allowed to stand, the NDC stands another chance of losing yet another seat where an Ivorian stood and won the elections in the Jomoro constituency. It will be too much for that party to bear because these two issues will expose the lawless nature of the Rawlings’ founded party.
Also, the fact that the Supreme Court is directing that the former NDC ministers/MPs who knowingly and yet illegally collected double salaries during the Mills/Mahama regime, must face persecution, demonising of the Apex Court would hopefully give the NDC some sympathy from the general public.
The NDC members are doing their worst to tarnish the reputation and image of the courts, especially the Supreme Court. So that, any verdict that will go against them should be considered a predetermined one against a party that stands for the poor and vulnerable, and yet could impoverish the poor to enrich themselves.
Matters will help if only the Supreme Court accepts the suggestion by the Attorney-General, that all high-profile cases should be telecast live. Anything other than that. Ghanaians should be sure that the NDC will raise tensions in this country, just to put some fear into the judges. Remember judges were killed in the PNDC era.
The question is, why is the NDC roaring this loud, at this time?
It has happened before. During the final years of the NPP Kufuor’s administration, at the time that Ghana’s economy was at its top with the dollar going for less than ninety-five pesewas, the NDC knew it must do something to make Ghanaians see the NPP administration as the worst ever in this country.
Corruption charges were levelled against the then government and so long as the lies could be told over and over again, for it to be accepted as the truth, the NDC went into business. It was propagated that a ship load of gold belonging to some NPP ministers was on its way to Europe when it sunk in high seas. To date, no report has been made of any such ship sinking.
Then, false bank statements were printed out bearing the names of some top ministers, showing huge sums of money deposited in those accounts. Even though Bank of Ghana came out to debunk the story stating that the amounts showing on those bank statements exceeded the total cash in banks and cash in circulation in the country, the harm had already been done already and most Ghanaians believed that the Kufuor Administration was made up of a gang of thieves and drug dealers. Remember, in the run up to the 2008 General Elections, Rawlings coined the name, Coke, meaning cocaine, for the NPP flag bearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Why all these? And it first became evident, that the NDC only lied big time to Ghanaians, when some of the ministerial nominees had to choke on their own answers when asked at the Appointment Committee of Parliament sittings, to justify those allegations they made against the previous NPP regime. Some were bold to admit that it was all political talk.
NDC from 2009 to 2017, could not persecute any former NPP political appointee because no matter how hard as it dug for facts of malfeasance, it turned out that no one misconducted themself in the Kufuor administration, while in office.
But why all these lies? As soon as the NDC came to power, it showed that its intention to govern this country was to fill the empty pockets of its members and enrich them, by any means available.
Corruption was clouded in new clothes and paraded with such pomp and pageantry. The list included the following:
1). Before JEA Mills came to power, there was the Mabey and Johnson bribery scandal. And when the case was called in the UK in August 2009, five cabinet members of Rawlings’ government were linked to a $40 million bribe case in they split $ 6 million bribe money among themselves, when JEA Mills was vice president.
And here is the NDC which Rawlings disturbed people’s ears roaring that it was a party of saints. Rawlings, himself should have been asked how come he became so wealthy. It could be possible that he pocketed the ¢ 50.00 bank notes he retrieved from Ghanaians in 1985.
2). During a People’s Assembly held by President Kufuor in Sekondi, one Kobina Badu (Maanoma), a well-known NDC member, attacked the fine gentleman, saying,”Mr Kufour, do you think the sea is like a lorry park which will need renovation when it is damaged?” Immediately after the NDC came back to power, President JEA Mills appointed Maanoma on the National Premix Committee. Kobina Badu used that opportunity to divert premix. He would collect four drums of the oil from every outlet in the region, whenever the consignments came and sell each drum at GH¢1,575 instead of GH¢ 910.00, (GH¢ 45.00 per gallon instead of GH¢ 26.00), whenever the premix was hard to come by. Assuming there are ten outlets in the region, Kobina Badu made a cool GH¢ 15,750.00 at the expense of the poor fisherman, who must pay an extra GH¢ 19.00 for a gallon of premix.
When Kobina Badu was found out and arrested, he was quickly released from police custody because it could dent the image of the president and government.
3). Speculations came out that President JEA Mills and his vice H.E. John Mahama were in the pockets of Zoomlion. Even though this was denied, it was very obvious that some NDC government and party officials had kick-backs from the refuse company.
4). The NDC transition team spent over GH¢361,000.00 on tea and water alone over a period of only two months.
5). GH¢1 million was spent on the visit of President Obama, a visit which was under 24 hours. Maybe, Ghana paid Obama, per diem and settled his travelling expenses.
6). When Alhaji Mutaka Mubarak as Sports minister, used his office as a charity organisation, buying pampas and khebab and travelling abroad with his girl friend at the expense of the Ghanaian tax payer.
7). There was also this famous Brazil FIFA 2014, when over $ 30 million earmarked for the Black Stars, players and management ended up in individual pockets. This necessitated the then President John Mahama to airlift $3 million for our players, avoiding payment of E-Levy.
8). Then there was this case of Alfred Agbesi Woyome, who was permitted to steal GH¢ 51 million from state coffers. When it became necessary for Woyome to face the courts, the NDC government changed the charge sheet from criminal to civil case. Meaning if Woyome were found guilty, he would not visit jail.
And in another surprising move, the government of the NDC stated that it was no longer interested in the case. So Woyome could walk free.
Questions which good Ghanaians are asking is that, was part of Woyome’s GH¢ 51 million, which he stole, used to finance the construction of the NDC headquarters? The most modern, state of the art, political headquarters, south of the Sahara.
More will come later. This is a way of cautioning Ghanaians that the NDC’s attacks against this current regime, and I agree and submit, that times are rough, is just to woo Ghanaians to vote that party to power, so that the members can go ahead and loot. And the next time, it will be more severe, because in a social media video clip, the NDC sent a warning that next time it comes to power, it will only take care to itself and not Ghanaians.
Hon. Daniel Dugan
