The Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Mr. Kwesi Pratt Jnr. has stated that if there is any government in the history of this country, with the worse human rights record, then it is the United Party (UP) tradition that gave birth to the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).

According to him, the atrocities committed during the bloody coups in 1979 and 1981, under the supervision of ex-President Rawlings cannot be compared to what took place during the days of what came to be known as 'Matemeho', which was staged by the leadership of the UP tradition, led by Dr. Abrefa Busia and J.B. Dankwah.

"What was worse than the leadership of the UP tradition planting a bomb in a bouquet of flowers and giving it to an innocent little girl to present it to Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of the country, to assassinate him”, he said.

The Insight Managing Editor made these statements when he addressed a forum organized by the "Free Tsatsu Campaign" to explain to the people of Tema the need to support the campaign to free Tsatsu Tsikata, the former boss of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).

On June 18 2008, Mrs. Justice Henrietta Abban convicted and sentenced Mr. Tsikata to a five-year imprisonment on charges of wilfully causing financial loss to the state.

The 'Free Tsatsu Campaign' seeks to solicit for support from the Ghanaian populace for Mr. Tsikata, because they believe that he has been denied justice.

The campaign is also asking the government to allow the judiciary to have a free hand to administer justice independently, according to the laws of the land, as well as to protect the fundamental human rights of every Ghanaian who appears before the law.

Mr. Pratt, who is also a member of the 'Free Tsatsu Campaign' said many well meaning Ghanaians, including some members of the judiciary are not happy about the way and manner that the former GNPC boss was incarcerated, but are afraid to voice out their opinions.

According to him, this is because majority of Ghanaians directly or indirectly depend on the government for their sources of income, and are therefore apprehensive that should they speak about the injustice meted out to the legal luminary, they would be denied their sources of livelihood.

Tony Lithur, who is also a member of the 'Free Tsatsu Campaign' and a legal practitioner, said Mr. Tsikata should by now become a hero in the country for the role he played in Ghana's oil find.

He explained that the way the former GNPC boss' case was handled shows that Ghana's legal system is completely broken down and added that even though a lot of things have happened during the last seven and half years, Mr. Tsikata's incarceration must be an eye opener for all Ghanaians.

Mr. Lithur expressed shock over the way members of the Ghana Bar Association, of which Mr. Tsikata is a member, has kept silent on the issue, despite the clear evidence that he has been denied justice.

The campaign train is expected to move to Kumasi on the 13th of this month to have a similar encounter with residents of the Garden City, from where they will extend their campaign to other parts of the country.


Source: The Chronicle