Please Koku Anyidoho, let the petitions flow!

I was over the moon when I read that the Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress, Koku Anyidoho has hinted that the NDC would soon bombard President Akufo-Addo with countless petitions (See: We will soon line up petitions for Akufo-Addo - Koku Anyidoho; 3news.com/ghanaweb.com, 03/07/2018).

The firebrand Deputy General Secretary of NDC is said to have claimed somewhat speciously that since His Excellency President Akufo-Addo has irrevocable penchant for dealing blissfully with petitions, they, (the NDC apparatchiks), are going to inundate him, albeit carelessly with all sorts of petitions.

Apparently, Koku Anyidoho is reported to have made this observation on 3FM’s Sunrise morning show following the dismissal of Electoral Commission Chair, Charlotte Osei and her two deputies Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwa.

Hear the vociferous NDC Deputy General Secretary: “Very soon we are going to line up petitions to the president, and see whether he will be able to look at all of them. The precedent has been set; the floodgates have been opened. The president wants to be a conveyer belt, and we will make him work very hard as a conveyer belt, the petitions will just flow in.”

Well, Koku, as a bona fide citizen, it is your democratic right to submit sound petitions to the president if you so wish. And the president is also obliged to forward such petitions to the appropriate quarters.

I am also pretty sure you and your cohorts would not abuse such rights by submitting extraneous petitions. And, if that was to be the case, I am sure you would not expect His Excellency President Akufo-Addo to forward such petitions. Would you?

Koku, since you were not specific about the types of petitions you and your cohorts intend to submit to the president, could I crave your indulgence for a moment longer and spell out a few suggestions?

Koku, although it seems extremely dreary and unfortunate to keep visiting the sudden and bizarre death of your beloved late President Mills, don’t you think it benefits no one, when we all keep quiet over the mysterious death?

Indeed, it would be a worthwhile if the good people of Ghana knew what actually happened to former President Mills on that fateful day.

Koku, in as much as our beloved president’s demise was so bizarre and painful, we can only invoke our instinct for tact and diplomacy and keep empathising with the late Mills family for their never ending pain over the unfortunate death, while we venture endlessly to pin together the apparent straddled jigsaw.

Koku, my first suggestion therefore is, please kindly direct a petition to His Excellency President Akufo-Addo to set up a Committee to investigate the inexplicable passing of our beloved President Mills.

Secondly, Koku, you would bear with me that in Ghana, individuals ignobly hide behind party colorations and would form an alliance, create, loot and share gargantuan sums of money belonging to the state and would eventually slip through the justice net.

Koku, the Woyome, GYEEDA, SADA, SUBA, the Brazil World Cup, the infamous Bus Branding and the NDC MPs double salary are a few of such scandals that come to mind.

Koku, how could Members of Parliament knowingly keep double salaries to the detriment of the poor and disadvantaged Ghanaians? Are you not worried of such shameful act?

Of course, Koku, the recipients of the alleged double salaries have an inherent right to the presumption of innocence. Suffice it to stress that it is the job of the Police to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, or to establish a prima facie case, and not a job for the suspects to prove their innocence.

Koku, I suggest you and your cohorts send a petition to His Excellency President Akufo-Addo to pass the preceding corruption scandals to the Special Prosecutor.

Next, Koku, a few years ago, Mr Martin Amidu came out and told the whole nation that in July 2011, there was a hue and cry about the prices for the acquisition of five (5) aircrafts for the Ghana Armed Forces which were negotiated by your former President John Dramani Mahama.

Mr Amidu however stressed that even though on 26th July 2011 the late Mills attempted to defend the purchase of the five aircrafts, he became convinced of the necessity to set up a Committee to investigate those purchases.

Mr Amidu’s stressed: “a Committee to Investigate the Processes of the Acquisition of Five Aircrafts (5) including Embraer 190 Aircraft and hanger for the Ghana Armed Forces consisting of Mr. William Aboah, Mr. George Amoah, and Brig. Gen. Allotey (Rtd) former Judge Advocate-General was put together”.

Mr Amidu avouched : “the terms of reference of the Committee as I was instructed and drafted them for the late President were: “(i) to investigate the processes adopted in selecting, negotiating, and agreeing on the acquisition of the aircrafts; (ii) to investigate the competitive advantage, prices of the aircrafts and the level of economic and financial due diligence conducted by relevant agencies in the process of acquisition of the aircrafts; and (iii) to investigate any other matter that in the opinion of the Committee is reasonably related to the foregoing terms of reference”. “Pressure groups never allowed the Committee to take off”.

“But the very fact that the late President Mills even contemplated this Committee meant that he was uncomfortable with and suspicious of the alleged inflated prices of the aircrafts”.

Koku, don’t you think the dubious aircrafts deal is a matter of national concern?

Indeed, it is extremely worrying, Koku, so please forward another petition to His Excellency President Akufo-Addo to constitute a Committee to probe into the cloudy deal.

Well, Koku, we also hope and pray that you and your minions don’t go to sleep any further over the STX Housing deal which was supposed to provide affordable housing units to the security agencies.

If you may recall, Koku, in spite of the fact that the deal did not materialise, the then Vice President Mahama is alleged to have given us a bill of an excess of $300 million. How strange?

Please Koku, don’t forget to submit another petition to His Excellency President Akufo-Addo for onward submission to the Special Prosecutor to probe into the alleged STX corruption scandal.

Well, Koku, as you would agree with me, the list of corruption scandals is not exhaustive, but due to space and time constraints, I will end here until next time.

K. Badu, UK.

k.badu2011@gmail.com