PRESS STATEMENT
National Security must stay off Let My Vote Count
Last Sunday, over 10,000 Ghanaians from all walks of life, mainly young men and women, met at the Norway Park, Taifa, Accra, to launch the Let My Vote Count alliance.
Those who met on the park to speak, dance and sing were expressing the anger, frustration and hopes of millions of Ghanaians who genuinely believe that their votes were not allowed to count in the December general elections and are determined to get this corrected to save our democracy.
A major partner in this necessary, non-violent mass action is Oman FM, one of the most popular radio stations in Ghana.
However, the frequency of Oman FM has been interrupted since the Sunday LMVC event.
The whole of this morning, a day originally planned for another public LMVC road show in Tema, Oman FM has been off air. Information that we have picked up from sources close to the system suggests that the National Security and National Communications Authority are behind this apparent, deliberate act of sabotage.
We have already picked up several signals that the ruling party and the National Security apparatus are very uncomfortable with the popularity that our new movement, Let My Vote Count, is increasingly enjoying and are determined to use any means necessary to destroy it.
We wish to remind them that Ghana is not a police state and that the right to assemble, the right to free speech are entrenched provisions in Ghana’s Constitution and we would not allow any person or organisation to take this right away.
We are committed to a peaceful, non-violent expression of concerns and no amount of state-sponsored intimidation and harassment can stop us.
We wish to remind the disputed President of the Republic that he would not succeed in bullying his way to hold on to power. Not even the KGB tactics and police brutalities of the Ukrainian authorities could stop the masses from protesting and the Supreme Court from ruling that their presidential election was rigged. If such state-sponsored act of terrorism could work against the tide of democracy in former communist state, Ukraine, then it certainly wouldn’t work in Ghana here.
This Sunday, the Let My Vote Count train will stop off, as scheduled, in Koforidua, at the Legion Hall, moving on to Tema the following Tuesday. There is no stopping us! There is no stopping now!
We call on the President to pull back from turning Ghana into a police state in this period before the Supreme Court ruling. We urge him to bring a stop to these deliberate acts of interference with that independent radio station, Oman FM.
John Mahama is increasingly acting like an ‘elected’ dictator. Since he was accused of conniving with the Electoral Commission to rig the 2012 elections, he has used all kinds of KGB tactics to silence dissent.
First, he sent armed soldiers and police to raid the collation centre of the NPP. Second, was the burglary of the computer server of the leader of the NPP legal team.
Legitimate attempts by two pressure groups, AFAG and Young Patriots to hold a demonstration were frustrated by the state.
Next is this attempt to stop the LMVC train. We are sorry, the train has taken off, it is on the move and picking up both speed and more passengers along the way and there is no stopping now.
We want our major media partner, Oman FM to be left to operate without any interference.
Our pre-launch road show at Drug Lane, Okaishie Market last Wednesday, was carried live on Oman FM, 107.1.
Again, the well-attended launch of the LMVC alliance Sunday afternoon was carried live on Oman FM and Choice FM, 102.3, as well. And, Oman FM will continue to partner us even if it makes John Mahama uncomfortable.
LMVC is a multipartisan movement set up to achieve two things, (1) support the case in the Supreme Court challenging the presidential election results and (2) push for radical reforms of the Electoral Commission so that the fraud and irregularities that occurred in the 2012 contest will not happen again.
We will not stop until our twin objective is achieved.
……signed……
David Asante – Member (0268220220)
James Kwabena Bomfeh – Member
Charles Owusu – Member
Abu Ramadan – Member
Charles Nii Teiko Tagoe – Member
Maame Afua Akoto – Member