Anti Revolutionary Publications
National Secretariat,
Parliament House Annex,
Accra.
29th July, 1985
ANTI REVOLUTIONARY PUBLICATIONS:
It has come to the attention of this office that certain groups abroad who are publishing periodicals calculated to undermine the revolutionary process in Ghana have been posting copies of these publications direct to addresses of key cadres with a view to confusing them over important issues.An obvious example is the "Talking Drums" edited by Elizabeth Ohene and supported by and reflecting the views of the London-based Ghana Democratic Movement led by J.H. Mensah and other PFP and PNP establishment figures in exile. The blatant misrepresentation in this publication need no pointing out.
Much more dangerous is the "Revolutionary Banner" also published in London by the so-called United Revolutionary Front, made up of extremists whose revolutionary rhetoric hides an absence of practical ideas, and a lack of self-discipline and commitment to the responsible pursuance of the revolutionary process. Having failed to gain control of the process, those behind the United Revolutionary Front have gone into self-exile from where they are trying to confuse and subvert their former colleagues.
Any Cadre finding himself or herself on the mailing list of these or similar publications is advised to inform this office.
POLITICAL COUNSELLOR ON DCRS Signed (LT-COL. (Rtd) J.Y. ASSASIE)
ALL SENIOR STAFF OF NATIONAL SECRETARIAT/CDRs
ALL REGIONAL ORGANISING ASSISTANTS
THE NATIONAL SECRETARIAT 31ST DECEMBER WOMEN MOVEMENT
THE NATIONAL SECRETARIAT, NYOC
...
We exist to differ
When the above circular reached our office through the kind offices of some of the 'cadres of the revolution' we were tempted to ignore it altogether.We are publishing it because we believe we have a duty to our readers and the people of Ghana in particular to bring to their attention the contempt with which the self-imposed rulers of the country have been treating the people.
To start with Talking Drums is NOT an underground magazine, we who write and publish it sign the articles and identify ourselves. Right from the start and consistently in the past two years we have proclaimed our readiness and willingness to publish as many with differing views on any subject as we would get.
Even though the paper does believe passionately that multi-party constitutional rule is the more sensible path of government to tackle our urgent problems in West Africa, those with differing views are not denied a space.
For record purposes, we would like to state that a few weeks after starting the publication of Talking Drums we wrote to the Secretary for Information, at that time, the dynamic Ms Joyce Aryee, to introduce the paper and ask for permission to sell the paper in Ghana.
She told us in a telephone conversation later on that the decision could not be taken by her Ministry but would eventually be taken "in the Castle". To the present day, we have not had even a formal letter of acknowledgement to our letter. We had always taken the position that they are so busy in the Castle trying to stay in power that it takes them some time to take decisions and reply to letters.
One of the earliest subscribers to Talking Drums is the Ghana High Commission in London and we know that many copies of the paper are sent to the Castle and other members of government every week. We refuse to believe that Ghana has reached the state where the rulers constitute such an elite group that they can read magazines and books that the public cannot get access to.
"The blatant misrepresentations" that according to Lt-Gen. Assasie, exist in Talking Drums are unfortunately not so obvious to us, even though he claims they need no pointing out. We do not know what his job as the Political Counsellor for the Economic Development, the Committees for the Defence of the Revolution involves, but we dare him to point out just a few of these blatant misrepresentations.
Why does he think that he and his colleagues can read things that other Ghanaians should not read and who told him that Ghanaians cannot see for them- selves "blatant misrepresentations" and reject them as such? This paper has never refused to publish any rebuttal from the Ministry of Information of Ghana since the official position seems to be to pretend that we do not exist.
And if Col. Assasie is indeed convinced of the correctness of their 'revolution', why is he afraid of dissenting views and of a paper that seeks only to provide a forum for the discussion of views.
For the records, we receive no support from the Ghana Democratic Movement.
