HURIWA PLEASED WITH GHANA'S GENERAL ELECTION

HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS' ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA, HURIWA, a development focused Non-Governmental Organization on Sunday commended Ghanains especially the outgoing President John Kuffor for overseeing a General Election that has been internationally acclaimed as being free,fair and peaceful which witnessed the emergence of an opposition politician Professor John Evans Atta-Mills of the National Democratic Party [NDP] as winner and the ruling Party's National Patriotic Party [NPP] candidate Nana Akufo-Addo accepting defeat gallantly after two re-run polls.The Rights Group consequently called on President Umaru Musa Yar'adua to immediatelly set workable machinery in motion to implement the salient and strategic aspects of the recommendations turned in by the Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais's led Electoral Reform Committee which includes the streghtening and granting of true independence to the incredibly partial Nigeria's National Independent Electoral Commission headed currently by Professor Maurice Iwu.The Rights Group also called for the sack of the Maurice Iwu-led leadership of the Nigerian Electoral panel because the continuous stay in office of Maurice Iwu and his cohorts shows that electoral impunity, the variant that was witnessed in the 2007 controversial polls in Nigeria thrives and is rewarded in Nigeria.

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Recalling that the 64-year old Atta-Mills is a versatile Law Professor who demonstrated an uncanny capacity as a consummate Democrat who himself conceded defeat to the incumbent President John Kuffor eight years ago in a General Election that he was widely expected to win, the Rights Group expressed optimism that the turn of event in the Ghana's General Election which will result in a smooth democratic transition from a ruling party to an opposition party will signpost the advancement of Democracy on the African continent even as the Group admonished the Nigeria's Peoples' Democratic Party [PDP] to emulate the shinnig example of the Ghana's current ruling Party by immediatelly dismantling all the dubious structures it [PDP] has erected to ensure that it rigs all elections in Nigeria for the next sixty years as recently revealed by the national leadership of the Nigeria's Peoples Democratic Party[PDP].

Specifically, Professor Atta-Mills was Internal Revenue Commissioner before he became the Vice President of Ghana under the former President John Rawlings whereas the defeated ruling party's presidential candidate Akufo-Addo a respected legal scholar was Justice minister and later the Foreign Minister. Akufo-Addo had alleged irregularities in the recent Presidential Polls and had indeed proceeded to a High Court to seek to halt the last re-run polls in Tain but his judicial prayers were turned down and when he realised that he has indeed lost to the opposition party's candidate, he immediatelly conceded defeat in the spirit of good sportsmanship.

HURIWA in a media statement issued and endorsed by its National Co'ordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko appaluded the outgoing President John Kuffor for in their words 'showing a shinning example as an international Statesman and a lover of durable, vibrant and transparent Democracy' by respecting the popular will of the voters of Ghana by remaining neutral and refusing to manipulate the electoral process to ensure that his party's candidate emerges winner by 'crook or con' as is predominantly practiced across the rest of the African continent including the so-called giant of Africa- Nigeria.

The Rights Group stated that; "We are happy and we congratulate the entire population of Ghana for standing resolutely in defense of their democratic Rights by ensuring that no matter how incredibly tough and tortuous the electoral process turned out to become with series of re-run elections, that the results of the election reflected the true picture of the vote cast at the polling stations. This is very dignifying and the Ghana's example of transparent and acceptably fair election will show the rest of the World that there are still some Africans with clear consciences who are not contemptuous of the popular Democratic choice of their voters and the Ghana people have shown to the World that the voice of the people is the voice of God. The Ghana's electoral feat will embolden Africans in all parts of the World to atleast argue that Democracy has a bright chance of surviving even with the torrents of distabilization plots by reactionary forces bent on keeping Africa and Africans perpetually in political and Economic bondage".