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Mills turns down National Award
Accra, June 30, Ghanadot/GNA – Professor John Evans Atta
Mills, Leader and Presidential Candidate of the National
Democratic Congress (NDC), on Monday turned down his
nomination for a state honour on July 3.
In a statement issued to the press on Monday, he wrote: “I
have, after very careful reflection, come to the conclusion,
regretfully, that I am unable to accept the award of Order
of The Star-Companion, for which I have been nominated by
President John Agyekum Kufuor.
“Were I convinced that accepting the award would help
promote national unity, reconciliation, social cohesion and
also enhance multi-party democracy, I would have
wholeheartedly accepted it. However, events following my
nomination give me cause to doubt that.”
Prof. Atta Mills becomes the latest known NDC official who
has turned down the state award. The others are former
President Jerry John Rawlings, former National Security
Coordinator, Captain Kojo Tsikata (Rtd), Mr Alban Bagbin, Mr
Doe Adjahoe and Mr Enoch Teye Mensah.
The NDC on Friday said the essence of the national awards
had been debased by the government and called for urgent
steps to restore respect and value to state awards.
The NDC said, the party shared this sentiment, held by
majority of the public as a “fall-out from the controversial
decision of President Kufuor to confer state awards on
himself and 268 others as well as some foreign nationals”.
A statement signed by NDC General Secretary, Mr Asiedu
Nketia said state awards were meant to recognise achievement
and merit of the highest level in the service of Ghana or to
humanity at large, while celebrating distinguished service
worthy of recognition and is expected to be conferred on
principles rather than political convenience.
“Indeed the full list of award winners reveals a cynical
ploy to confer state honours on President Kufuor himself and
almost his entire cabinet and Government, using a few NDC
officials as tokens of justification and even-handedness in
the process.
“To accept these honours in the face of the controversy
generated within the NPP circles following the nominations
with the attendant indecent attacks on our leader Prof.
Mills by key elements within the NPP, who went on to demand
the inclusion of their flag bearer Nana Akufo-Addo in the
same category as Prof. Mills, is to condone the hypocrisy
and deception of the NPP government.”
The statement said the conferment of State Awards was fast
losing its true significance and a review of the entire
process was necessary to restore relevance and pride to
national honours.
Until this is done, the NDC said, it was urging all party
officials to decline the awards even as they may have
individually acknowledged their nominations.
“As part of its agenda, when it assumes office, the NDC
would set up a broad-based council, independent of the
political establishment to undertake a comprehensive review
of processes leading to nominations for National Awards.”
GNA
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