NDC Demands Inquiry Into Atta-Mills Fiasco

The opposition National Democratic Congress- NDC is demanding an immediate inquiry into the invasion of the residence of the former Vice President Professor John Atta Mills.

The NDC was referring to the seizure of vehicles from the Mills' residence on the 31st of January for what it sees as flimsy reasons. The vehicles included two official vehicles allocated, fuelled and maintained by the state as part of the transitional arrangements.

The opposition party, which sees the action as part of the harassment of political opponents, wants the inquiry to include the inhuman and degrading treatment meted out to Mrs. Mills by the security team that invaded the house.

NDC General Secretary Alhaji Huudu Yahaya told a press conference that "the security agents threatened and intimidated Mrs. Mills who was forced to release the vehicles, and thereafter, summoned to the offices of the BNI and subjected to intense questioning and made to write a statement. Such was the trauma that by the security machinery such as the invasion of the private home of the former Vice President."

Alhaji Yahaya said the action of the security apparatus and the conflicting reasons offered for the action, "affects the national psyche of our body politic" and urged President Kufuor to act fast to end these developments, and stop his agents who it accuses of being bent on creating a police state.

The security personnel who produced a search warrant told Mrs. Mills that they were under instructions to seize all vehicles in her possession.

But a press statement from the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) explained that the exercise was because the registration numbers on the vehicles that needed to be changed because they are security operational numbers.

The NDC says the BNI explanation is as disingenuous as that of the deputy government spokesman Kwabena Agyepong who told Radio Gold in Accra that the security personnel did not have a search warrant.

"The conflicting reasons given by the agents sent to accry out the exercise and the press release by the BNI is ample evidence of an inept cover up attempt, and a disingenuous attempt to throw dust into the eyes of the public," says the NDC.

It described as lies, Kwabena Agyepong's explanation that security agents trailed a vehicle with a classified security registration number to a private residence where more vehicles with similar numbers were found, and authorization sought to retrieve them.

According to the NDC scribe, it is strange that the numbers of these vehicles allocated by the state are unknown to the national security apparatus.

It added that it is at a loss as to why the Mrs. Mills is being asked to effect changes to a vehicle that belongs to the state, and about which she had recently met with Group Captain (Rtd) Awuviri (another of the many people attached to the office of the president) to discuss the maintenance of the vehicles.