"I foresaw June 4 coming"

A spiritualist, Mr. Ramel Nii Ankrah stunned the National Reconciliation Commission, NRC, yesterday when he narrated esoteric sounding stories about how as a spiritual scientist he had encounters with the former president, Mr. Rawlings who sought to work with him.

Eventually though Rawlings and his PNDC sent a killer squad to finish him off he told the commission.

He also told the commission that he foresaw June 4 coming and even told some of the persons in authority at the time about it but they ignored his counsel on the subject he told the commission adding that if they had heeded his advice the event of that date would not have taken place.

He had brought his case to the commission because he felt his human rights were trampled upon under the PNDC, a regime which he said had accused him of planning to overthrow the junta illegally.

He told the commission that he formed two movements whose main objective was to work towards the moral reawakening of citizens. He added that during the Limann administration, he planned a national crusade to treat the moral degeneration of the country.

The former president, Mr Rawlings, he said sent someone to come and call him for a chat about his movement. During the meeting they discussed how best he could take part in the activities of the movement.

During the third visit to the former president, Rawlings asked him to suspend the crusade and await his (Rawlings) assumption of power. When the coup did come, he told the commission that he was invited to work with the head of the PDCs but he declined.

One day he said he was called by one Rev Appiah of the Ramier Church for a discussion. The late Victor Owusu who was a patron of the movement, he said warned him to be wary of the reverend whom he said was a Rawlings' spy.

He ignored the advice and went but there he could not take the suggestions of the man.

Just as left the premises of the church soldiers arrested him and took him to Gondar Barracks where he was interrogated by Major Courage Quashiga and Pattington and his file which he carries along all the time was inspected.

His accusers concluded that he was harmless. He was subjected to beatings and kicks which he alleged rendered him impotent in view of which he said his wife walked out of the marriage.

According to him, the soldiers who picked him up told him that they had been instructed to finish him off.

Freedom did not come to him as he was taken to the BNI where another interrogation took place. With no evidence available to nail him he was set free unconditionally but made to pay a feeding fee of two hundred and eighty cedis.

His brush with the law at the time was because of his association with the late Victor Owusu, whom the junta felt was a threat to their government.

That was not the end of his ordeal, he told the commission because at Bortianor where the Soso Wey had appointed him an executive officer to assist them in their quest for a change in the status of their area to a district among other functions he was dragged to a court.

One day he was served with a criminal summons but when he appeared at court he said the judge asked that he be taken to the psychiatric hospital. He objected to the order because according to him he was normal.

At the hospital he warned Dr. Asare not to administer any medication on him because he was normal adding that he would sue him if he ignored his advice.

He told the commission that he had not committed any crime against the republic and was therefore demanding compensation through an NRC recommendation for the inconvenience he and his family had suffered.