Minority
express concern about State of Emergency
Parliament
re-imposes State of Emergency
Minority
express concern about State of Emergency
Accra (Greater Accra)
24 April 2003- The Minority in Parliament on Wednesday expressed concern about
the President seeking to re-impose the State of Emergency in the Dagbon
Traditional area. Doe Adjaho, Minority Chief Whip said the Standing Orders of
the House on the declaration of State of emergencies need to be respected and
that the House, having taken a decision earlier it cannot be reversed without a
substantive motion to rescind the first order.
He was contribution
to the debate for the resolution for the approval of the State of Emergency in
the Dagbon Traditional Area in Accra. Abraham Ossei Aidooh, Majority Deputy
Leader however disagreed with the contention explaining that the proclamation
was a fresh one and different from the State of Emergency that the house failed
to extend.
Modestus Ahiable,
Ketu North said it was clear that the real substance of the two proclamations
were the same and that it was not fair that it was being smuggled into the
House under a new packaging. He said if a new format was being undertaken to
achieve the same result then it was obvious that the fundamental laws of the
country was being abused.
The First Deputy
Speaker, Freddie Blay over-ruled the objections of the Minority members saying
the two resolutions were different and consequently asked the Minister of
Interior to go ahead to read the resolution.
Hackman
Owusu-Agyemang, Minister of Interior said the action of the President seeking
to re-impose the state of emergency was completely within his constitutional
mandate. He said the re-imposition was a fresh proclamation and not an
extension of the original proclamation that the House failed to extend last
week.
John Darko-Mensah,
Chairman of the Committee of Defence and Interior said Parliament has exercised
due diligence in supporting the president to ensuring lasting peace in the
Dagbon area and appealed to members to as usual do the same.
Dr Benjamin Kunbuor,
NDC-Lawra-Nandom said care should be taken so as not to polarise the Dagbon
chieftaincy and traditional issue into an NDC and NPP political affair. He said
Dagbon has been there before the two parties and as such it should be moved
above the two parties.
Dr Kunbuor said the
State of Emergency must be based on factual issues on the ground and questioned
whether it was needed only for maintaining law and order. He also asked whether
it was the fundamental human rights or the maintenance of law and order that
the state of emergency seeks to achieve and to what extend was it protecting
the human rights and dignity of the people as against law and order.
Dr Kwame Addo-Kufour,
Minister of Defence said during a state of anarchy and lawlessness, the civil
liberties of the individual needs to be sacrificed to save lives and property.
He said there were very serious obstacles to be overcome before the state of
emergency can be totally lifted since its imposition was in the interest of
peace in the Dagbon area, its people and for national security.
Victor Gbeho, Ind.
Anlo said the re-imposition of the state of emergency would have its effect in
the Dagbon area and on the exercise of governance whether it was a new one or
old proclamation. He said the inability of security forces to bring the
situation under control was that either they are incompetent, deficient in
their judgement or do not have any insight into the problems in Dagbon and how
to arrive at solving them.
Gbeho said there was
the need to beef up the security there and reject the state of emergency since
the call for rejection of the state of emergency does not mean withdrawal of
the security agencies in the area.
J. H. Mensah, Senior
Minister said the new proclamation did not mean that the executive was treating
the decision of Parliament with contempt. He said the government would not
allow the Dagbon issue to be turned into a NPP and NDC affair since it
transcends party lines and borders on an age-long tradition of the people.
Mensah said there
should be preventive action and framework to ensure that human rights can be
maintained and gave the assurance that every measure would be taken to ensure
the protection of lives and property.
Mrs Hannah Tetteh-Kpodar,
NDC- Awutu-Senya said the house has since last year unanimously renewed the
state of emergency in order to maintain the fragile peace in the Dagbon
traditional area. She said the peace can be built without necessarily forcing
the people and that if there were seriousness about resolving the issue, there
was the need to move from away from the monthly ritual to finding lasting
peace. Earlier, the newly elected NPP Member of Parliament of Gomoa East,
Richard Quarm swore the oath of allegiance and office and took his seat in the
House.
GRi…/
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Parliament
re-imposes State of Emergency
Accra (Greater Accra)
24 April 2003- Parliament has in a unanimous decision of 155 votes approved the
Resolution for the re-imposition of the State of Emergency in the Dagbon
Traditional Area for a further three months.
The House delayed the
commencement of its Public Business for over two hours to pass the resolution
and after debate on it the House again adjourned sitting for another hour
following disagreements between the Majority and Minority sides as to the
essence of the State of Emergency.
The State of
Emergency could not be extended for a further one month last week when the
Majority were unable to get the 100 plus members for the Resolution. The votes
were 88 against 73.
The President
declared a state of emergency last week in the Dagbon Traditional area acting
in accordance with the Advice of the Council of State on the state of affairs
in the area published in Gazette Number 18 dated 17 April 2003.
Hackman
Owusu-Agyemang, Minister of the Interior in moving for the resolution for its
approval said the president in declaring a fresh State of emergency in the
Dagbon Traditional area a week ago, acted on security reports that it was the
only way of sustaining the current tranquillity and assuring peace in the area.
He said the Area may
be enjoying relative peace but the situation was still fluid and fragile and
needs to be properly handled and managed. The Minister said consultations were
currently at advanced and delicate stages and that the two Gates at an earlier
meeting denounced violence and asked that the ban on drumming, areas covered by
the curfew and the curfew periods be considered while commending the
performance of the security personnel.
Owusu-Agyemang said a
lot has been achieved but a tremendous challenge still confronts the nation in
its bid to make intermittent conflicts in Dagbon a thing of the past. He said
the immediate challenges include retrieving traditional paraphernalia,
reconstruction of the Gbewaa Palace, performance of the burial and customary
rites of the late Ya-Na and enskinment of a new Ya-Na.
"There is no
quick solutions to such situations, there is the need to create time to heal
and there can be no hasty dismantling of defences," adding that "as I
speak now, fighting has again erupted in Tamale with some fatalities", he
added.
Owusu-Agyemang said
the action of the president seeking to re-impose the state of emergency is
completely within his constitutional mandate and that it was a fresh
proclamation and not an extension of the original proclamation that the House
failed to extend.
He said the
government has taken note of the concerns of members of the House and a
bi-partisan body would be established to monitor complaints from the public on
any issues relating to the implementation of the state of emergency.
District Chief
Executives are also to be advised to assist Members of Parliament in performing
their duties in their constituencies. He said "if we approve the State of
Emergency, this august House would be strengthening the hands of the security
agencies to act with dispatch to maintain peace until our collective hope for a
durable and lasting peace and concrete resolution of the age long dispute in
Dagbon is attained".
GRi…/
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