Following President John Evans Atta Mills’ recent directive to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr. Paul Tawiah Quaye to re-open investigations into the serial murders of some 34 women prior to the 2000 elections, the New Crusading Guide newspaper has made frantic efforts to contact all the players involved in the recycled drama for their thoughts on the subject.
When this paper, as part of its crusade, first contacted the outfit of former President Jerry John Rawlings, a possible prime witness in the matter, to ask whether he would co-operate with the Police by way of volunteering the so-called information he has long claimed to have, his spokesperson, Mr. Kofi Adams stated that his boss did not have any idea of President Mills’ directive, two days after it was issued.
Mr. Adams was specifically asked how his boss reacted to the President’s directive and he answered that: “the former president hasn’t heard any such news so I don’t know how he will react to that”.
He continued: “you are speaking to me and not Mr. Rawlings so I will not know if he will cooperate with the police or not, he is somewhere and I am here. I don’t know if he even knows about this”.
Barely a week after the rather unsatisfactory response from Mr. Adams, this paper called him again yesterday on the same issue but this time he said he could not speak to the subject because he was in South Africa, (most likely with Mr. Rawlings who has been in that country since Sunday).
Readers will recall that former President Rawlings in an interview with a team of senior Police Officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service in June 2003 on the serial killing issue, stated that women were deliberately targeted by the NPP after the latter’s research had indicated to it (NPP) that women voters constituted the backbone of the NDC’s political and electoral machinery.
Pushed to release the names of the NPP members allegedly linked with the killing of the 34 women, Mr. Rawlings stressed that he would not do so because by so doing he would be helping them to defend themselves: “I will mention their names if only there is a chemical interrogation. I won’t put the cart before the horse”, he stressed.
This paper’s next point of call was the offices of the personnel mandated to carry out the President’s directive - the Ghana Police Service. Mr. Kwesi Ofori, Police Public Relations Officer (PRO) has on three different occasions since the directive was issued promised to seek clearance from his bosses to enable him to comment on the subject.
Mr. Ofori who was still hesitant to make any comment when contacted on the phone yesterday invited this reporter to come over to his office this morning at 11:00am for a detailed conversation on the matter.
Meanwhile President Mills has directed the IGP to re-open investigations into the suspected serial killings of women ahead of eh 2000 general elections.
The President’s order has prompted media speculations that the directive probably followed incessant pressure brought to bear on the President by his former boss, Mr. Rawlings.
Sections of the media also reported that the IGP was preparing to invite the former President to help the police unravel the mystery surrounding the killing of 34 women in the country.
Source: New Crusading Guide-Ghana
