The Minority in Parliament on Thursday staged a walk out on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo during his penultimate State of the Nation Address at Parliament House in Accra.
The President was in the house to exercise his constitutional mandate in accordance with Article 67 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.
According to the minority, the walkout was to communicate to the President their displeasure over the President’s consistent refusal to listen to legitimate concerns on matters that can derail the country’s emerging democracy.
Addressing the media to explain their motive for the staged walkout, Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu said the President after assumption of office has conducted the affairs of State with tyranny, despotism and authoritarianism that frightens many objective observers.
The minority Leader stated that all steps taken by them to restrain the President from towing the wrong path have proven futile and this puts the democracy of the country at great risk. “We have in the face of extreme provocation exercised restraint and urged the president to depart from his perilous path that puts the democracy of our country at great risk”. The leader lamented.
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According to the minority, the President for instance has refused to abide by the recommendations of the Emile Short Commission following “the state sponsored terrorism that occurred during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election in January 2019”.
They attributed this to the fact that the president has refused to disband the illegal SWAT team which has been populated by known hoodlums belonging to his vigilante groups.
The minority alleged that “any more of these blood thirsty hoodlums continue to be trained at national security installations and are being armed ahead of the 2020 elections.”
Touching on electoral issues, the minority has described President Akufo-Addo has the only President in the fourth republic to “supervise the cruel removal of Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Madam Charlotte Osei.”
On conversations around the compilation of a new voter’s register, the minority are of the view that “The Akufo-Addo-led Government in cahoots with the Jean Mensah-led Electoral Commission remains intransigent despite overwhelming public opposition including from a strong coalition of Civil Society Organisations and Political Parties”.
They added that the conduct in infamy appears to have paved the way for an elaborate scheme to rig the 2020 elections by compiling a new Voters Register.
Haruna Iddrisu also said media freedoms have been under attacks under the Akufo-Addo led Government as many journalists continue to be attacked, with others having to seek refuge outside the jurisdiction.
He made reference to Government’s inability to investigate and bring to light the killers of Ahmed Hussain-Sale’s murderers.
“The Government has still not found the killers of investigative journalist, Ahmed Hussain-Suale who was assassinated in cold blood. Despite demands from the international community for action, he refuses to speak to the matter and no updates on investigations have been provided. Many journalists continue to be attacked, with others having to seek refuge outside the jurisdiction.”
Minority Leader added that the Akufo-Addo government has taken interest in collapsing businesses of citizens. They stated that ” the growing culture of impunity and the tyranny that has reached alarming proportions was once again on the prowl when agents of National Security demolished businesses belonging to Ghanaians in the private sector located at the Ghana Trade Fair Site at dawn under the cover of darkness”.
The minority concluded by saying their walkout was a bold protest and a signal to the president that impunity shall no longer be accepted.
“Our walkout was therefore a bold protest against tyranny and to send a very clear message directly to President Akufo-Addo that enough is enough. We shall no longer accept the growing levels of impunity and unconstitutionalism masked by duplicitous and hollow rhetoric”.
Source: Theresa Adezewa Ayittey
