[ 2019-03-08 ]

Short Commission of Inquiry ends public hearing
Accra, March 8, GNA – The Ayawaso West
Wuogon Commission of Inquiry on Friday brought its
public hearing to a close.

The Commission, which started its public hearing
on February 14, sat for 13 days, with 34 witnesses
appearing before it.

The breakdown of witnesses include three ministers
of state; Mr Ambrose Dery, Minister of the
Interior, Mr Albert Kan-Daapah, Minister of
National Security, and Mr Bryan Acheampong,
Minister of State in-charge of National Security
at the Office of the President.

Others are Mrs Jean Mensa, the Chairperson of the
Electoral Commission, and Mr Delali Kwesi
Brempong, the National Democratic Congress (NDC)
Parliamentary Candidate, in whose residence the
violence broke out at La-Bawaleshie during the
Ayawaso West Wuogon Parliamentry by-election.

Others are Mr John Boadu, the General Secretary of
the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Murtala Ahmed
Mohammed, the General Secretary of the Progressive
People’s Party (PPP), and 10 Police
Officers including Mr David Asante-Apeatu, the
Inspector General of Police.

Also making appearance were three officials from
the National Security, three media practitioners,
and two representative of civil society
organisations – the Coalition for Domestic
Election Observers (CODEO) and the Centre for
Democratic Development (CDD) Ghana.

In addition, there was one expert witness; Dr
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, a Security Analyst; and one
eye-witness.

Seven victims, including Mr Sam George, the Member
of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, also testified
before the Commission.

Following the outbreak of violence at
La-Bawaleshie during the by-election on January
31, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo set up a
Commission of Enquiry to do a far-reaching
investigation, which would sustain the peace of
the nation.

It was chaired by Mr Francis Emile Short, a former
Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and
Administrative Justice.

Members of the Commission are Professor Henrietta
Mensa-Bonsu, an eminent professor in Criminal Law
and Mr Patrick Kwarteng Acheampong, a former IGP,
with Dr Ernest Kofi Abotsi, a private legal
practitioner, and a former Dean of the GIMPA
Faculty of Law, as the Secretary.

Mr Eric Osei-Mensah is the Counsel of the
Commission.

The public hearing was brought to a close at the
37 Military Hospital, Accra, where it took the
Testimony of its last witness, Mr Ishahu Yaro, who
sustained severe gunshot wounds on his right leg
during the violence and had been on admission
there since January 31.

Mr Short, in his closing remarks, noted that the
Commission would soon present its report to the
President.

Mr Abotsi expressed gratitude to the President for
setting up the Commission.

He expressed gratitude to their partners,
especially the media, for their support.

He said the Commission was going to review
carefully every evident it had received and
testimonies presented.

He said the Commission’s report, to be
presented to the President, would reflect a
balanced way the evidence were presented.

“So nothing is going to be compromised. And
I can assure everybody that this Commission is
going to deliver a report that reflects the facts
and evidence presented before it,” he said.

Source - GNA

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