GDM condemn secret trial
A press statement read at the Africa Centre, London to coincide with Ghana's twenty eighth independence anniversary noted that the two majors among the accused had been personal friends and active supporters of Rawlings from 1979, whose sudden disillusionment should elicit many questions as to why Flt-Lt Rawlings who in 1979 had the benefit of an open trial should settle on a secret trial for his former allies.
The two majors, John Ocran and Hamlet Akwasi Twumasi Antoh, Staff officers at the Headquarters in Accra, three non- 1st Brigade commissioned officers and a civilian are currently being tried secretly before the public tribunal for allegedly plotting against the government.
The NCOS are Sgts Joe Issaka, Oduro Frimpong and Francis Yao Anku while the civilian is Shaibu Ibrahim, alias Baba. Two others, Malam Abdul Aziz and L/Cpl Michael Asiedu who were reportedly not in court, would be tried separately.
The Ghana Democratic Movement catalogued a number of attempts that have been made to topple the military regime of Flt-Lt Rawlings and the indiscriminate arrests and killings that have been perpetrated by Rawlings and re-iterated its warning that as long as Rawlings and Tsikata continue to hang on to political power which they have unjustly usurped, and to preserve themselves by such violent means, they: will face a series of forceful challenges from other Ghanaians who are equally versed in the use of guns and who do not accept their usurpation.
The movement further called for the abolition of the PDCS/CDRs, and the other organs of the 31st December coup d'etat along with the PNDC itself as a necessary first step in the political reconstruction of Ghana. They proposed that the Armed forces should return to barracks and a general political amnesty be declared, including the release of all detainees and the restoration of full freedom of speech, of movement and of association. "Unless these conditions are fulfilled all that will happen will be a political farce, designed to perpetuate violence, disorder and illegality," they concluded.
Mr J.H. Mensah, chairman of the Movement for Democracy.
