To paint the UP Tradition as murderous, Asiedu-Nketiah, spoke about the NLM and alleged killings. The NLM is always falsely accused as a murderous party because of the instability in Kumasi and parts of Ashanti region when the Akans natives of that region demanded a federal form of governance (mate meho) to a centralised system.
The NLM was founded by Asantehene’s chief linguist, Nana Baffour Akoto and was largely joined by people who defected from the CPP. Political gurus, like Victor Owusu. R.R. Amponsah and Joe Appiah, who were staunch CPP members in Ashanti region which at that time comprised today’s Ashanti, Ahafo, Bono and Bono East regions, defected to join the NLM. So, if the NLM is a murderous party it clearly showed where the members came from, the CPP. Why did the Ashanti CPP defect from the party?
The entire region was not satisfied with the following: 1) Nkrumah’sinterference in chieftaincy by making it mandatory that only he could enstool/enskin or remove a chief from the stool or skin. The chiefs in the region, stood up against this.2). Nkrumah’s imposition of parliamentary candidates on constituencies, which the youth of the party who stood up against this were suspended or dismissed.
3) Ashanti region which was the largest and most populous region in Ghana was allocated less constituencies. The people in the region were not happy about this, and4). Nkrumah, for not fulfilling his promise to increase producer price of cocoa when he gets elected. When he got elected, he rather drastically reduced the producer price and hedged it for four years. The cocoa farmers never forgave him.
Now, during that time Ashanti region was made up of today’s Ashanti, Bono, Bono East and Ahafo regions. This means, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah who was born in Seikwa in the Tain district, was born in the Ashanti region on December 24, 1956.
History indicated that the NLM was not a violent party and it was rather the CPP which started killings in our political history. In October 1955, in Kumasi, during a political banter between CPP and NLM youths, Twumasi Ankrah of the CPP, without any provocation, stabbed to death E.Y. Baffoe of the NLM. This was what sparked off the political unrest in the region. So, it was the CPP which started the political murders in our recent history.
Hon. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, at his propaganda worse, lied that the NLM was the first ethnic/regional/religious based political party to be formed, which inspired others to do so.
These are the parties that united to form the United Party (UP) and when they were formed. 1). Togoland Congress (1951). 2). Anlo Youth Association (1952).3). Muslim Association Party (1953/1954), formed by Muslims who opposed the CPP. 4). Northern People’s Party (NPP) founded on April 11, 1954. 5). National Liberation Movement (NLM) founded September 19, 1954.6). Ga Shifimokpee (July 7, 1957), formed by Gas who were harassed by the CPP.
All these individual political parties united on October 13, 1957 to form the United Party (UP) from which the Progress Party, Popular Front Party and New Patriotic Party came to be formed. The NPP did not descend from the NLM.
All the noise was for the socialists to continuously paint Nkrumah as an angel and show how deeply they love him and at the same time to paint the UP members as demons. But history showed that it was the other way round.
First, Rawlings overthrew an Nkrumaist party in government, the PNP. Those who plotted this coup were Nkrumaists/socialists and never people from the UP Tradition. Second, the Nkrumaists defected in droves to join Rawlings and left Nkrumah’s traditional party, torn and shattered and it has never won even 2% of votes in any elections in this Fourth Republic.
Third, Rawlings boldly declared that all Nkrumah gave Ghana was a national flag and national anthem. Fourth, when the socialists appealed to Rawlings to remove the name Kotoka from our international airport, he rebuked them saying Kotoka was a hero who restored democracy in Ghana.
For thirty-six years of socialist rule, from 1972 to 2000 and 2009 to 2016, the socialists could not change the name of the airport. But now that Rawlings is dead, the NDC have the courage to change the name of the Kotoka International Airport.
This hypocritical love for Nkrumah is very suffocating.
Talking about murder and today Ghanaians are torn into confusion as to whether Jerry John Rawlings was a murderer or not.
I personally do not think this should be anything debatable in the country. But if it were an Akan/Asante who did what Rawlings did, the rest of nation will rise up in unison to condemn him as a murder.
What will Ghanaians call an Asante who instructs the military to hunt down a man of God in his church, tie him up and tie the other end of the rope to the back of a military vehicle and drag him on the roads of Kumasi until he died?
What will Ghanaians call an Asante who instructs his cabinet to abduct some judges and a retired army officer and when he was later informed that they were despatched (killed), he came to tell the nation two days later that the judges, one of whom was a nursing mother, and the retired army officer were abducted by anti-revolutionary forces?
What will Ghanaians call an Asante who ordered the arrest, detention and torture of Kyeremeh Djan and an Anlo Mawuli Gokah, who were forced into cannibalism, as each one’s flesh was sliced and the other forced to eat? And Mawuli’s only crime was that he had a corvette which Rawlings’ bosom friend a Lebanese called Riad Hozaifehwanted at all cost.
Please we must always confront whatever is wrong and condemn it as should be the case. We must not distort history in attempts to protect our own and blame the innocent.
Hon. Asiedu Nketiah wanted to justify the killing of the eight former heads of state and military officers by firing squad by saying they were put on trial and found guilty. Guilty of what? An Anlo gentleman, Joy Amedume was killed for borrowing money to build a house, was that an offence? If it is then, what about Rawlings who acquire mansions and estates beyond his means and earnings?
Hon Asiedu Nketiah went on to say, the first killing by shooting range was by the NLC which he added was an NPP “owned.” Ghanaians must know the difference here, Yeboah and Arthur were found guilty of killing Kotoka and were sentenced to death.Did any of the eight kill anyone? And for God’s sake, the NLC had nothing to do with the NLM or UP and certainly not the NPP. If the NLC was a UP agent, why was General Ankrah intending to form a political party and run for president?
In June 2020, barely five months to his death in mid-November, Rawlings a Catholic decided to confess his heinous sins, hoping to gain absolution and ride straight to Heaven with a clean soul.
Below are extracts from his confession:
“It might interest you to know that Afrifa was being provocative.”
“I COLLECTED THE LIST AND DID WHAT I HAD TO DO… we had to make some serious sacrifices …. And here you have innocent people as well who had to die to save hundreds.”
“They obviously hurt me a few times. Talk about the innocent ones as well. That was a painful one, that one has to live with. BECAUSE SOME OF THEM WERE GOOD PEOPLE AND DIDN’T DESERVE TO DIE. But that is the only way we could prevent the thing from getting out of hands.”
When asked by the host, “do you regret it.” Rawlings took a deep breath and then said, “NO COMMENTS, YET.” This could mean, he did not regret it?
These were Rawlings’ words when he was interviewed by Asaase FM’s Kweku Sakyi-Addo in late June 2020. He admitted that those shot to death at the Teshie Shooting range were innocent. So, what makes him? If he made these admissions in a court of competent jurisdiction, will he be conflicted of murder or manslaughter?
In his interviewed he lied about Afrifa embezzling funds given,to fight Acheampong’s Union government to edge out Paa Willie in the UNC and that warranted his murder. Afrifa contested for parliamentary seat while Paa Willie went for the presidential seat. So, how could Afrifa have urged him out?
In Ghana, today many families continue to mourn the murder of their love ones under the Rawlings administration. And two very innocent Anlo Ewes were killed under Rawlings’ instructions. One only borrowed money from the bank to build his house and the other only legally owned a car which RiadHozaifeh, coveted over. Two innocent Anlos, Rear Admiral Joy Amedume and Mawuli Goka were killed for doing nothing wrong. Yet, the Anlo Traditional Council, twice elevated Rawlings and made him chief.
After Rawlings made these admissions on air, the Council could not rebuke him, but today it is seeking to find out who called Zanetor, the daughter of a murderer. What is the Anlo Traditional Council saying to the Amedume and Gokah family?
To know what Rawlings was, Ghanaians need to encourage Kwaku Baako to come out with all he has on Jerry John Rawlings.
To this end, can our majority MPs in Parliament, discuss and carefully analyse what Rawlings said about his conduct on the issue of the killings of the eight senior army officers and heads of state in June 1979, in the interview with Kweku Sakyi-Addo, and tell Ghanaians, in one word, how they will describe Rawlings?
Whiles at this, can all socialists come out with documentary proof to show that J.B. Danquah is a traitor.
Hon. Daniel Dugan
