The National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) plans to re-invite Cpl Mathew Adabuga who made various allegations against former government officials including the ex-President Jerry John Rawlings to be cross-examined by the alleged perpetrators.
The Executive Secretary of the NRC, Dr. Ken Attafuah, who made this known to ?The Chronicle? newspaper did not indicate when Cpl. Adabuga would be invited.
Adabuga, who has discounted the assertions of both the former president and Capt (Rtd) Kojo Tsikata after they had testified at the Commission fortnight ago, has expressed his willingness to make himself available to be cross-examined by his alleged perpetrators.
Dr Attafuah said the commission would invite Cpl Adabuga to appear to be cross-examined as soon as those whose conduct he had impugned made a statement in accordance with the commission?s procedures.
?If the alleged person whose conduct was impugned complies with our procedures and expresses willingness to cross-examine the accuser, then we will endeavour to make the person available for that purpose.?
Justifying Adabuga?s possible recall, Dr Attafuah explained that Adabuga had impugned the conduct of ex-President Rawlings, Capt Tsikata, former National Security Adviser, Tsatsu Tsikata and a lot of prominent personalities associated with the PNDC regime when he testified before the Commission.
He said the Commission had informed the alleged perpetrators by letter about the various allegations made against them by Cpl Adabuga and invited them to comply with the procedures of the NRC, saying that anytime they responded, the commission would not hesitate to invite the accuser for cross-examination.
Dr Attafuah emphasized that the Commission was committed to ensuring that the rights of all persons named as alleged perpetrators or whose conducts were impugned were given the platform to clear their names. He said the commission was not a witch-hunting agency but rather it was committed to upholding the truth in any matter that came before it with the aim of reconciling the nation.
Dismissing various assertions made against the commission, the executive secretary said, ?The Commission is impartial investigative body to give opportunity to everybody whose conduct has been impugned by people who appear before it as long as that person complies with the procedures of the commission.?
Throwing more light on the procedures, he said one has to fill the statement forms of the NRC and attach them to one?s own statement, adding that one could even write a letter to the commission and go before it by filling the forms which would take less than five minutes.
Cpl Adabuga, one of the major architects of the 31 December 1981 revolution who had last year appeared before the commission was reported by an Accra daily as indicating his willingness to come back to defend all that he had told the commission.
?I stand by my story and everything that I had told the commission and I want to meet them ?fiili fiili? (face to face) anytime, anywhere, especially the former chairman of the Provisional National Defence Council Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings.?
In reaction to the evidence given by Captain Tsikata, Adabuga said there were many questions concerning the murder of the three High Court judges and the retired army officer, which the former security capo would have to answer.
