Kufuor Has Touched Me- Rawlings

The recent comparisons of President Kufuor to Ghana's most notorious armed robber, Atta Ayi by President Rawlings appears to have more than incensed Mr. Kufuor and his ruling NPP. A proof of how much anger the comparisons have generated is the Press Conference addressed yesterday by the NPP Chairman, Haruna Esseku specifically to react to the so called insult of Mr. Kufuor by President Rawlings.

Earlier last week, President Kufuor in an indirect riposte to the former President, called on Ghanaians not to accord any room to persons who seek to discredit the high seat of state through insults and invectives. Without mentioning the name of President Rawlings, he went on to say that once the people have elected an individual into a position of Trust and Authority, everyone must make an effort to respect the Office.

The Lens sought an interview with President Rawlings to find out what he makes of these recent fitful reactions from President Kufuor and his party NPP.

On President's Kufuor statement that people in authority should be treated with respect, President Rawlings had this to say: “They have no moral authority. What they have is not authority but just naked brutal power devoid of any moral authority.”

“If ever, it had any such authority, Kufuor's regime lost that moral authority a long time ago. Thankfully that authority continues to be in the hands of the governed though in an inert way. Kufuor is only ruling through brute force and terror tactics using the paid mercenary media and certain elements in uniform. What they have is blind power not Authority.”

“Some insults are false, some are true” the former President said. “We do not hurl false insults. They are the ones known to hurl false insults at us. Whatever we say about them is the truth”. “If I call them thieves and murderers, it is not meant to be an insult but an _expression of the truth” the former President asserted.

Citing the jailing of innocent NDC ministers, the killing of the Ya-Na and the killing of Alhaji Issa Mobilla as just a few instances of the brute force and terror tactics of the Kufuor regime, President Rawlings said: “As long as these blatant injustices continue under Kufuor, the people of Ghana must know that Kufuor is touching me.”

“He touches my soul anytime innocent people are persecuted and tried and jailed as they did to Peprah and Co and are planning to do to a few more people who served in the NDC government. They are preparing to jail some more innocent NDC people as part of their politics of attrition against us.” President Rawlings said.

“The massive corruption, the slaughter of the Ya-Na, the political murder of Mobilla, the near destruction of the air force, the promotion of wrong people at the expense of the noble ones are examples of ways in which Kufuor continues to touch my soul” President Rawlings declares.”

Readers should look out for President Rawlings' take on the Togolese political situation in our next issue.