Assasie-Gyimah Petitions NRC

Accra, Feb. 6, GNA - Naval Captain Assasie-Gyimah (Rtd) on Thursday petitioned the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) to give him the opportunity to appear before it to clear some issues in which witnesses accused him of abusing their human rights.

He said in a 13-point petition that he was pleading with the Commission "to give me the opportunity which I thought was my right to listen to the story of Private Twumhene, subject him to cross-examination and state my own case for the truth to be known by all."

Capt. Assasie-Gyimah said the opportunity extended to E.T. Baba to appear before the Commission during the previous sitting to face his accuser questioned him and telling his side of the story should as well extended to him.

He explained; "On the 27th November 2002, I received a letter NRC/14/128 from the Director of Investigations of National Reconciliation Commission inviting me to report to the Director to assist in investigations into a matter in which according to him my name was mentioned.

"I complied with the request and submitted a written statement to him on either 12th December 2002 or 18th December 2002 in answer to certain false allegations made to the Commission by one Private Twumhene.

"It had been my prayer that the Commission would invite me together with Private Twumhene for him to narrate my involvement in the alleged abuses of his human rights in my presence. That would have enabled me to ask him questions if any in order to establish the truth or otherwise of his allegations."

He said one Corporal Stanley Ob! eng Otchere who appeared before the Commission, as a witness fo r Private Twumhene was "the same Otchere I had identified in my earlier statement to the Commission as one of the soldiers who molested the suspects among whom was Twumhene."

Mr Assasie-Gyimah said he saved both Otchere and Twumhene from "the wrath of their soldier colleagues and I therefore deserve their gratitude rather than vilification from these two ex-soldiers.