THE GHANAIAN INTERIOR MINISTER HAS LOST IT

By David Sambou,UK.

I was browsing through the allafrica.com when I came across a story that was posted from the Ghanaian chronicles, which is a Ghanaian newspaper. On was an interview they had with the interior minister who goes by the name kwamena Bartley [Kwamena Bartels]. Mr Bartley was some how appealing to the Ghanaians to be patient whiles assuring his compatriots that the government was doing all it could to uncover the mystery surrounding the gruesome murder of 44 Ghanaians execution style in the Gambia. I entirely agree with him on that, since the government of the Gambia is suspected to play a part in the murder in one way or the other.

Athorough and lengthy investigation takes place after crimes like these in order to build up a strong case and an example of this is the massacre in Srebrenica of ethnic Albania by bestial Serbian forces in the former Yugoslavia in the 90’s which took investigators some time to prepare their case. Although that was an attempt of ethnic cleansing this was committed by a
cowardly and bloodthirsty group of vicious brutes and the tactics applied are the same, gagged their victims, and frogmarched them to face death in the hands of heartless and ferocious evil doer.

I agreed with him up to the point when he was asked what Ghanaian should expect if the evidence gathered go against Yahya Jammeh and his response was “the best thing is for president Jammeh to compensate the families of the victims”. Only if this is a
misquotation but if this is the actual response the minister has giving, then he is stupid and irresponsible indeed. Is that how cheap a Ghanaian’s or African’s blood is these days? What kind of precedent are we setting?  These are the kind of leaders who have put us in the morass that Africa has become, in terms of the respect for the rule of law.

The rich and powerful never pay for a crime committed but receive a slap on the wrist instead, which is nothing but an insult to our intelligence. Only what it takes is to be decapitated by a genocidal murderer and your bodies ditched in the bushes and guess what? No justice but only a compensation for such barbarity. Where is the decency? I wonder how much of a compensation will console the grieving mothers and fathers, sons and daughters of the victims  seeing their love ones’ murderer(s) not doing jail time or any form of punishment. It is time for our African leaders to start talking sense and represent the people that elect them sincerely.

If Mr Bartley’s own child was a victim in this dastardly act he wouldn’t be seeking for compensation alone but justice like
wise the families of those poor Ghanaians whose only crime is to be at the right place at the wrong time. Since every human being on earth is protected by human rights whether they are Brazilian Indians living in the heart of the Amazon forest or Sudanese in the lawlessness of Darfur, therefore their immigration status is a none issue in this case

This unfortunate murderous actions in the Gambia has provided Ghana on behalf of the entire African continent, an opportunity to set a precedent in Africa, that evil dictators will never go unpunished, like the case in Liberia where an ex-president is bearing the brunt of his wickedness, so should be an example of a sitting president with blood dripping down his hands. Ghana should exhaust every possible means to gather as many evidence as possible and pursue the matter with the International court of justice.

We must remember that what had happen to these Ghanaians ,could happen to anybody regardless of  nationality, but if evil dictators in Africa realise that there is no where to hide if they commit genocide, then the safer we are. Could anyone imagine
if an American, British or any other European citizen were among the death, then by now, who ever were responsible would be having terrible nightmares.

We have to respect and value the sanctity of life and should not sit back and allow people’s life being taken in vain. I hope the minister’s opinion is not the official Ghanaian position in regards to this matter, they have to take a firmer and more affirmative action even if its going to lead to the cooling of relations between the two countries, there is no point in relations if members of your household are been murdered in a friend’s house and you are facing lack of cooperation by the same friend in your efforts to unearth the reasons why they are been murdered.

I would like to thank you, the editor and your team of dedicated staff for covering the story of the massacre in our mother land by a paranoid group of feral butchers, and at this juncture, I would like to appeal to all Ghanaians especially those who visit this site on behalf of my Gambian brothers and sisters,that, 99.999% of ordinary Gambians are appalled by the events that took place in the Gambia on Friday 22nd July 2005. It was committed by misguided moronic element, Gambians have been living with not only Ghanaians who have set up a village in the Gambia but with everybody from different parts of the continent and the wider world and in no particular time has such an evil, xenophobic idiocy ever occurred. We stand by you in your pursuit for justice for your people, our people, the African people. God bless your path.