Court process served on Speaker against NDC MPs shows Akufo-Addo’s doublespeak – John Mahama

Former President John Dramani Mahama says it is double standard for the Akufo-Addo led government to call for consensus building in parliament while NDC MPs continue to be harassed.

His comment follows a court process served on the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin by the Greater Accra Regional Police Commander charging leadership of the NDC Parliamentary caucus for unlawful assembly in connection to their march to the EC headquarters.

The NDC MPs, numbering about 20, embarked on the exercise to present a petition protesting the results of the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary polls.

This was after continuous street protests by supporters of the party following the declaration of the NPP’s Akufo-Addo as President by the chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Jean Mensa.

They were subsequently charged by the police for unlawful assembly contrary to section 202 of the Criminal Offences Act.

But when the case was called at the Accra Circuit Court 11 Monday, January 4, 2021, the circuit court judge was forced to adjourn since none of the accused persons or their lawyers were present.

Speaking to JoyNews, the former MP for Kumbungu Ras Mubarak had indicated that his colleagues will not honour the police summon served on them to appear before the Accra Circuit Court.

He had explained that the police is committing an illegality by executing a criminal summons on serving members of parliament without the permission of the speaker.

Hence the decision by the Greater Accra Regional Police Command to serve a new court process after Mr. Alban Bagbin was successfully elected as the new Speaker on January 7.

But condemning the action by the police in a Facebook post, the 2020 flagbearer of the NDC, John Mahama said it was unbelievable that the President will preach unity and consensus in Parliament only for NDC MPs to be targeted by the police a day after.

According to him “Our Orwellian reality in Ghana compels us to accept the doctrines of newspeak, whose sub-doctrines are doublespeak and doublethink”.

“Otherwise, how else can it be said that the President was in Kumasi preaching consensus building in respect of the newly elected opposition Speaker of Parliament, and the very next morning, the Greater Accra Regional Police Commander was serving a Court process on the said Speaker, charging leadership of the NDC Parliamentary Caucus for unlawful assembly in respect of their procession/ walk to the EC to deliver a petition on Techiman South.

“I “can’t think far”, he wrote.

Source: myjoyonline