Salifu Saeed – Northern Regional Minister
President Akufo-Addo is one man who would not brook breaches of the law. His appointment of a non-NPP man to become the maiden Special Prosecutor evidences this fact.
We can imagine how upset he is with the unwholesome occurrence at the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) a couple of days ago when Kandahar Boys descended upon the facility and chased out the CEO.
The President has abhorred vigilantism and would never be party to anything which borders on violence and unruliness.
The National Youth Wing of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has distanced itself from the nonsense because after all, that action is uncharacteristic of the ruling party, an alien behaviour which all must sneer at.
We salute the Northern Regional executives of the NPP for joining the chorus of condemnation of the iniquity and serving notice that ‘we would not shield lawless youth’. That is a responsible action and very much in tune with the character of the NPP.
The NPP is on a nation-building mission and would not allow miscreants to derail its efforts no matter who such persons are. The dark chapters in our country’s history should not be re-enacted; come what may.
We are told that the Northern Regional Minister has intervened in the brouhaha which visited the TTH. It would seem that the facility was under siege the young men having taken over the place in a civilized society where the rule of law is a feature of governance. Why did they not proceed to run the facility and even run clinics?
We are saddened that the miscreants have gotten away with the nonsense because there is no word of an arrest and processing for court.
The NPP leadership could not have authorized such uncouth conduct by the Kandahar Boys and so for the regional minister to even say the action was not sanctioned sounds bizarre and out of place. The NPP has never and would never order its youth to embark on a mission of unruliness. Those who do are always sanctioned appropriately and where the law enforcement must deal with the issues, they are not hindered. That is the NPP for you.
As head of the regional security committee, it behooves him to deal with the issue. An intervention which stops at pleading with those behind a criminality to stand down and return home is not welcome news and does not allow for the flourishing of the rule of law.
When law enforcement personnel begin to feel that the youth can breach the law when they belong to a particular political party, trouble lurks. Only a prosecution would obviate a future recurrence of the nonsense.