{"id":602294,"date":"2019-03-26T08:10:13","date_gmt":"2019-03-26T08:10:13","guid":{"rendered":"
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The Minority in Parliament says a statement by the Majority denying the abduction and disappearance of Mahran Mustapha Baajour, a Lebanese businessman, is undignified.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Minority claims that Mahran Mustapha Baajour arrived in Ghana on December 13, <\/span>2018<\/span> the family of the abducted Lebanese had since January 19, <\/span>2019,<\/span><\/span> instructed their lawyer, Roberts Ekor Dassah Esq. to commence legal action to compel Government to produce Mr Baajour.<\/span><\/p>\n

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However, the Majority in Parliament has described the claims by the Minority as palpable falsehood.<\/span><\/p>\n

A member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, John Ntim Fordjour in a statement Monday said, \u201ccredible checks conducted at the National Security and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, affirm beyond a doubt that no such person had arrived at the Kotoka International Airport.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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But in a yet another swift reaction\u00a0to the Majority\u2019s position on Monday, Ranking Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, said there is <\/span>in fact<\/span><\/span>\u00a0a record of the Lebanese businessman\u2019s arrival in Ghana.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe should hasten to add also that upon carrying out our own checks, we have evidence from the Middle East Airline which brought Mahran to Ghana on the 13th of December, 2018. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018Suffice to point out that several witnesses who were on board the flight with the businessman stand in readiness to testify, not to mention an official confirmation from the Ghana Immigration Service which was adduced in court affirming that Mahran Mustapha Baajour had indeed been processed at the Kotoka International Airport on the said date,\u201d the Minority MP said in the statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read the full statement below.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

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MINORITY REACTS TO GOVERNMENT’S SHAMELESS DENIAL OF THE ABDUCTION OF MAHRAN MUSTAPHA BAAJOUR<\/span><\/p>\n

The Minority in Parliament has become aware of an ignominious and undignified statement by a member of the Majority side of the <\/span>Committe<\/span> on Foreign Affairs seeking in a most pathetic effort to deny the obvious abduction and disappearance of Mahran Mustapha Baajour, a Lebanese businessman who arrived in Ghana on 13th <\/span>December,<\/span><\/span> 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n

We note that the desperate statement which lacked any modicum of morality and truth was signed by Rev. John Ntim Fordjour. One wonders if our Honourable colleague, a Reverend Minister still believes in the sacrosanct John 8:32 – “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”<\/span><\/p>\n

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For the avoidance of doubt, the Minority in Parliament firmly stands by all the facts as presented in our release of 24th <\/span>March,<\/span><\/span> 2019 as they remain the incontrovertible and unimpeachable truth.<\/span><\/p>\n

In any case, we find it curious that Government did not consider it worthy to deny virtually these same facts as carried consistently by the Insight Newspaper and the international media several weeks before we put out our statement. Perhaps even more strange is Government’s continuous silence in the face of protests in Lebanon accusing Government of the abduction several days before the Minority’s statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Minority wishes to further bring to the attention of the general public that the family of the abducted Lebanese had since the 19th of January, 2019 instructed their lawyer, Roberts Ekor Dassah Esq. to commence legal action in an Accra High Court seeking to get the Human Rights Court 1 to compel Government to produce Mahran Mustapha Baajour. Our information is that the next court date for the hearing of this case is 2nd <\/span>April,<\/span><\/span> 2019 and we should humbly appeal to the media to take interest in the court proceedings if indeed we are all interested in knowing the truth. [For ease of reference – the case is: The Republic Vs The Director, Bureau of National Investigations (1st Respondent), The Attorney General & Minister for Justice (2nd Respondent) and Mohammed Fawzi Aminu Amadu (Applicant)].<\/span><\/p>\n

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We should hasten to add also that upon carrying out our own checks, we have evidence from the Middle East Airline which brought Mahran to Ghana on the 13th of December, 2018. Suffice to point out that several witnesses who were on board the flight with the businessman stand in readiness to testify, not to mention an official confirmation from the Ghana Immigration Service which was adduced in court affirming that Mahran Mustapha Baajour had indeed been processed at the Kotoka International Airport on the said date.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Minority can now confirm that following our initial statement calling into question Government’s conduct, we have received news from Lebanon that Mahran Mustapha Baajour has a few hours ago been removed from Ghana and arrived in Beirut, Lebanon today the 25th of March, 2019. Mahran arrived on Qatar Airways and is currently being debriefed by Lebanese authorities even as his family in Lebanon has been contacted.<\/span><\/p>\n

Clearly, but for our statement exposing the Ghanaian Government’s terrible misconduct in this abduction affair, the businessman would not have been released from unlawful detention.<\/span><\/p>\n

Noting these bizarre developments, the Minority calls on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to launch a <\/span>full scale<\/span><\/span> investigation into the circumstances leading to the abduction and subsequent removal from Ghana of Mahran Mustapha Baajour.<\/span><\/p>\n

It must be noted that indications from Mahran’s family, the Lebanese Government and human rights activists suggest that we have not seen the end of this matter. This is precisely the reason why the court proceedings in the Human Rights Court in Ghana is set to continue despite Mahran’s sudden removal from Ghana and without prejudice to other international legal actions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Without <\/span>doubt<\/span><\/span>, this is not a matter the now predictable cheap, mischievous and laughable strategy of Government knocking heads within Parliament’s Committee of Foreign Affairs will save those who conspired to bring our country’s image into utter disrepute.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Minority in Parliament assures the good people of Ghana that we would continue to jealously guard the <\/span>long established<\/span> image of Ghana as a nation that upholds fundamental\u00a0 human rights and the rule of law, therefore, we would resist attempts by rogue elements to tarnish Ghana’s <\/span>hard won<\/span><\/span> reputation and soil our good name in the comity of nations.<\/span><\/p>\n

Signed,<\/span><\/p>\n

Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (MP)<\/span><\/p>\n

Ranking Member, Committee on Foreign Affairs.<\/span><\/p>\n

[25th <\/span>March,<\/span><\/span> 2019]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n