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Ghana @50 probe commission issues one week ultimatum to ex-MMDCE
By Awudu Salami Sule, Ghanadot
Accra, Oct 15, Ghanadot - The Chairman of the Commission probing
the Ghana@50 celebrations has given former Metropolitan
Municipal and District Chief Executive (MMDCEs) in the erstwhile
NPP administration a one week ultimatum to appear before it.
Justice Isaac Duose, the chairman for the commission declared
the 'fatwa' in his closing remarks today after the second day
testimony by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana @50
seceretariat, Dr Charles Wereko-Brobbey.
He warned that any MMDCE who has been named in the course of the
probe and who fails to turn up to give evidence will be pursued
using the state security agencies.
"Now that it has become absolutely necessary to invite them, we
will have to use the security agencies to pursue them," he
charged.
The chairman's caution was however objected to by Mr Kwadwo
Mpiani, the Chairman of the National Planning Committee of the
Ghana @50 celebrations which exercised an oversight
responsibility for the events.
He presumed that there would be an unintended consequences if
the security were involved in the matter citing past unlawful
actions meted out to former government officials by personnel of
the national security.
Mr Mpiani therefore appealed to Justice Duose to restrict
himself to the public call he made on the persons concerned to
voluntarily appear as involving the security could defeat the
purpose of the Commission.
The Commission Chairman agreed with Mr Mpiani but insisted that
some of the persons named during the probe ought to have come
before the Commission to offer some clarifications and
explanations but had failed to do so.
He noted that some of the MMDCEs, whose names had been mentioned
had been refuting the allegation in the media.
"We are not here to take evidence from the radio
stations, you must appear here personally to prove your inocence",
Justice Duose added.
He reiterated his call on MMDCEs who have been cited to
voluntarily appear, or face the law after the one week
ultimatum.
Counsel for Mr. Mpiani, Mr Egbert Faibille also pleaded with the
Chairman to reconsider his decision to use the security agencies
to pursue witnesses on the expiration of the one week.
He submitted that some of the persons involved might have either
travelled out of the country or genuinely not heard the
Chairman’s admonition on them through the media.
"To use the security to haul such people to appear before the
Commission could therefore be problematic" he noted.
Justice Duose agreed again, but stuck to his earlier position of
the one week ultimatum citing time constraints on the part of
the commission.
Ghanadot
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