Attorney-General?s remarks are offensive -Andani

MEMBERS of the Andani family have protested against what they term the utterances of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Nana Akufo-Addo, in asking for an extension of the state of emergency in Dagbon.

They said the Attorney-General mentioned a number of what he referred to as intractable problems that necessitated the extension of the period, some of which included problems associated with the successor to the murdered Ya-Na Yakubu Andani II and the funeral of Ya-Na?s predecessor.

A statement issued by the family and signed on its behalf by Dr Alhassan Wayo Seini, Dr Yahuza Gomda and Dr Adam G. Nasser said, ?We find it difficult to understand why the minister should raise matters relating to the funeral and succession in the present circumstances when the main subject of the current crisis in Dagbon is the gruesome murder of the Ya-Na and more than 40 other innocent citizens of Dagbon.?

It noted that President J. A. Kufuor has himself referred to the events in Dagbon as a ?heinous crime? and appealed to the President to caution the Attorney General to spare the people of Dagbon another tragedy.

It wondered why the funeral of the predecessor of Ya-Na Yakubu Andani, who died more than a decade ago, should feature as one of the reasons for the extension of the state of emergency, unless the Attorney-General is telling Ghanaians that it was the issue of the funeral which provoked the murder of Ya-Na Yakubu Andani.

?If that is the case, then the Attorney-General should have no problems zeroing in on the murderers, and in the interest of the country, he should do that and save the nation the colossal amount of money that is being pumped into the work of the Wuaku Commission,? it stated.

It said without waiting for the Wuaku Commission to complete its work, the minister is already giving an inkling into government?s attitude towards the crisis and its ?utter insensitivity towards the feelings and sensibilities of the people of Dagbon and, indeed, of the entire Ghanaian people.?

It said the family would like to find out whether those specific utterances made by the Attorney General in Parliament on June 13, 2002, are an indication of a predetermined position of government.

The statement said it is quite alarming that there are still some people within the government who, up till now, cannot grasp the magnitude of the crisis in Dagbon.

It recalled that in the immediate aftermath of the murder of the Ya-Na, Ms Elizabeth Ohene, Minister of State, made comments on JOY FM?s Front Page programme on March 29, to the effect that the NPP had earlier promised to assist the Abudu Gate to perform the funeral of the predecessor of Ya-Na Yakubu. It alleged that Ms Ohene went on to say that in order to do that, the sitting Ya-Na will have to vacate the Gbewaa Palace.

?We are, indeed, aware that some of the then contestants for the NPP?s presidential ticket made some very extreme promises to the Abudu Gate and at the appropriate time, we shall make the specifics public,? it said.

It reminded the Attorney-General that he is not an ordinary official of the Kufuor Administration and that he had once sought to be the flagbearer of the NPP.

?Finally, we will like to remind the minister that whatever he says carries weight and if his recent comments relating to the funeral of the predecessor of the murdered Ya-Na Yakubu Andani and the succession to the Dagbon kingship are an indication of things yet to come, then the government should think twice before committing another blunder in Dagbon,? it cautioned.