National Security Lawyer blasts Kufuor & Anane

National Security's legal counsel, Nana Frema Busia has said that the renomination of Dr. Richard Anane by the President is not just unethical and undemocratic but a testimony of his weak leadership and dictatorial tendencies.

"In spite of President Kufuor's self-serving assessment that he has a strong legacy, when history is finally written, he will be credited with weak moral leadership. His Excellency's moral legacy will certainly be soiled. If questionable ethics affect democratic credentials, then the President is ill-advised and must rethink the unwarranted insistence on the continuing Anane public embarrassment saga, and withdraw the controversial renomination in good faith for the following cogent reasons," she said.

In a statement issued exclusively to the Enquirer, the soft spoken Nana Frema Busia observed that "It appears that Ghana does not even need a Transport Minister if the portfolio can be left vacant for such an extensive period. The emphasis on Dr. Richard Anane's competency" is disingenuous and overrated.

“Furthermore, the issue relates to qualitative professional and moral credibility in public service, not the merits or demerits of the Supreme Court decision which in my opinion is a disservice to the ultimate public good"

According to the National Security's legal brain, the majority on the Supreme Court let Ghana down when the august bench failed to look critically at the overriding importance of public policy and public interest dimension and set a bad precedent in her opinion, by dwelling on a “not-so-convincing analysis of procedure."

"The Supreme Court decision is not any type of victory for Dr. Richard Anane, but a weakening of CHRAJ, particularly in the absence of an independent Minister of Justice to check executive excesses and abuse of power when the information, which was whistle blown to the public, which constitutes a public complaint was literally weeping and begging for investigative review."

Nana Busia who is a daughter of Kofi Abrefa Busia, Ghana's Prime Minister in the Second Republic noted with sadness that the Court has ordered CHRAJ to act as an ostrich with its head buried in the sand to our collective detriment and missed the essence.

'''Was the matter worthy of investigation? Did CHRAJ err in its conclusions? Is a formal complaint a material fact which will change the outcome of re-investigation?

"If a complaint will not change the outcome then there is no point in expunging the record" she stated.

According to her, an outcome determinative analysis can establish the principle of the need for a complainant assuming an accurate constitutional interpretation, which is debatable and leaves the substantive record intact this is not a contradiction" she added.

"Expunging the record is prejudicial to public interest, executive accountability and violates the principle of freedom of information as well as exemplifies the illogic and conflict of interest in the fusion of Attorney-General and Minister of Justice.

Perjury: The Court's time bomb
Touching on the issue of perjury against Dr. Anane and the court's ruling that CHRAJ shouldn't have ventured into making findings of perjury, Frema Busia observed that "it is a legal time-bomb."

"A conclusive indicator in the public domain that while conducting an investigation of corruption, CHRAJ should not have found perjury is a legal time-bomb. If no perjury occurred, then this is a different issue altogether" she added.

Explaining further by way of example, the US-trained lawyer noted that "Assume Mr. A shoots at Mr. B but Mr. B does not die. If during a criminal investigation of attempted murder, it is established Mr. A had no intention to kill Mr. B but to frighten and rob him and did in fact commit the armed robbery, during which the locally manufactured designed AK47 accidentally fired in an ensuing scuffle, should the finder of fact ignore the fact that a robbery had occurred and set Mr. A free because the facts do not support attempted murder?

“This would be a recipe for armed robbers to run riot and maim with impunity as if we do not already have a national crisis, one would be promoting national insecurity."

Anane shooting of sperm
"Talking shooting, even if all the errant former Minister of Health was doing was 'shooting sperm' we all know the rudimentary fact that sperm is a deadly weapon in the inviting arms of HlV/AIDS" she said.

In Nana Frema Busia's view, when Dr. Richard Anane, a medical doctor, as substantive Health Minister engages in illicit unprotected sex, he displayed gross incompetence and lack of understanding of the basic facts of HIV/AIDS transmittal within the context of his assignment of ministerial portfolio.

"Was the Minister attending an HIV/AIDS conference?” If ever there were a classic demonstration of incompetence, this is it HlV/AIDS is the most debilitating health emergencies in our country, costing billons of dollars worldwide in Research, Treatment and Awareness Campaigns for behavioral change" she said.

The National Security lady said even if all other allegations of corruption and abuse of office are thrown away on the issue of his sexual escapades, "Dr. Anane acted in a reckless disregard of, and contrary to his terms of reference as Health Minister; this is not a cause celebre.

“What kind of ethical imperative does this impart to our children and on HIV education? What ethical violation or conduct of impropriety should we expect from Dr. Richard Anane within the Transport Ministry portfolio and why should it be Dr. Anane's exclusive domain?”

Ms Busia argues that implicit in the proposed reappointment of Anane ''under the current circumstance, where the position has been left open for his obviously anticipated return is the message that violation or conduct or impropriety should we expect from Dr. Richard Anane within the Transport Ministry portfolio and why should it be Dr. Anane's exclusive domain."

Ms Busia argues that implicit in the proposed reappointment of Anane ''under the current circumstance, where the position has been left open for his obviously anticipated return is the message that a philandering husband's award is ministerial medals," querying, "Is this the lesson that President - Kufuor wants us to learn?"

Palmer Buckle tasked
She argues further that President Kufuor, who is a catholic, has lost the moral plot by giving sanction to sexual laxity as if it were a machismo achievement.

Asking what the Catholic view of the Anane renomination is, she said, "This falls squarely in the ambit of Arch Bishop Palmer Buckle, whose busy schedule no doubt includes reconciliation of broken marriages since catholic theology is anti- divorce."

Ms Frema Busia continued that Dr. K. A Busia, in his book Africa In Search of Democracy, stated: A basic tenet of democracy is that all men including party bosses and rulers are fallible and consequently there should be effective institution of the expression of criticism and constitutional change of government.

Consequently she said “If Kofi Busia has relevance in the so-called DANQUAHIBUSIA tradition, then the President's action is a stab in the back."

To the appointment committee
To the Parliamentary Vetting Committee, she urges "the 'moral' majority or is it going to be a 'moral' minority of the People's representatives on the Parliamentary Vetting/Appointments Committee to reject the Anane nomination or is there going to be a dominant male Parliamentary collusion?"

"Are the women going to vote their conscience or endorse party loyalty?" she wandered, declaring: "I shall not hold my breath."

She advised Ghanaians to cultivate the practice of "holding our parliamentarians accountable on how they vote on issues in parliament and halt them from becoming a mere rubber stamping machinery of state. The people exercising their electoral power should vote out parliamentarians without honour during the coming elections based on their stand on issues including good old fashioned values and not party colors."

Positive change
As far as the legal advisor is concerned, "The Truth is Positive Change has to encompass adherence to principles and moral values with exemplary leadership.

In spite of lip service and tokenistic gestures towards women empowerment and their significant role in nation building, President Kufuor has let Ghanaians, in particular the women and children of Ghana down by not upholding the sanctity of marriages. So many homes in Ghana are broken; so many families in Ghana are hurting from infidelity.

"Truth is, in an undisciplined Ghana that needs attitudinal and fundamental social change as well as transparent firmness in correcting socio-economic disorder, compassion as a functional element of democracy does not equate a one-off valentine chocolaty 'I care for you' symbolism or state sanctioned extra-marital affairs. Sadly, President Kufuor has definitely signaled a wrong national message."

Source: The Enquirer