Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Junior has recounted his arrest 36-years ago when he together with others tried to reverse the unconstitutional and treasonable disruption of the 4-year mandate of the Limann Administration.
In a Facebook post, he hinted of plans to publicly tell his story which shall be recorded for the benefit of the younger generation and posterity.
Read full text of his post below;
Exactly 36 years ago today, I was arrested for being part of a plot to reverse the unconstitutional and treasonable disruption of the 4-year mandate of the Limann Administration.
24 hours earlier, Kwasi Agbley, Stanley Armattoe, Nat Ayivor and Yaw Adu Larbi, all members of the Leadership of the Movement On National Affairs (MONAS) had been arrested and incarcerated in various military guardrooms at Burma Camp.
Also arrested same day (February 4, 1982) were Freddie Blay and Kabral Blay-Amihere. They were suspected as close associates of MONAS. I was sent to the Signals Guardroom and subsequently relocated to the Field Engineers Regiment Guardroom where I experienced “fire and brimstone”. After 50 days in the various military guardrooms at Burma Camp, we were all transferred to various prisons across the country for periods ranging between 12 months and 24 months. Kwesi Agbley and I were the last to be released!
Thankfully, the Almighty and Merciful Allah protected us and kept us alive. Some others were not so lucky. They died fighting to restore constitutional normalcy. 36 years down the line, some of us are still alive and active in the political and democratic evolution of our dear country.
The story, the FULL STORY , SHALL soon be told and publicly recorded for the benefit of today’s generation and posterity. 36 years ago today. I REMEMBER!!
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That era so a number of attempted coup d'tat or disruptions which were dealt with so much military precision. Kweku Baako is a failed coup maker but all along he has tried to cover up that by saying they were trying to reverse the unconstitutional whatever. They were charged for treasonable act. THERE is nothing like reversing.
THERE WERE NEVER A TIME WHEN GHANAIANS STOP FIGHTING AGAINST AUTHORITARIAN RULE. IT IS BY THAT SPIRIT THE INSPIRE GHANAIANS TO CHALLENGE COLONIAL GOVERNMENT TO INDEPENDENCE. THE SAME SPIRIT LED MANY TO FIGHT NKRUMAH LIFE PRESIDENT GOVERNMENT. SOON AFTERWARDS GHANAIANS REINTRODUCE MULTIPARTY POLITICS AND CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT. WHEN ACHEAMPONG BROUGHT MILITARY GOVERNMENT GHANAIANS ROSE UP AGAIN TO CHALLENGE . GHANAIANS BY WISDOM AND COURAGE WOULD HAVE DUMPED THAT REGIME WITHOUT ISSUE BUT JJ AND SOME JUNIOR RANK SOLDIERS WANTED ATTENTION AND TAKE REVENGE FOR THEIR VARIOUS PERSONAL HATREDS. THE SECOND COMING OF JJ AFTER LIMAN GOVERNMENT WAS BASICALLY STAGED TO GIVE JUSTIFICATION TO THE ATROCITIES COMMITTED IN THE JUNE FOURTH. AS IT IS WITNESS IN HISTORY, AN ATTEMPT TO JUSTIFY EVIL BRING MORE EVIL THAN THE ONE PREVIOUSLY COMMITTED. VIVID EXAMPLE IS THE PORTRAYED IN THE STORY OF DAVID. JJ AND HIS JUNE 4 HAD KILLED THREE HEAD OF STATES AND SOME MILITARY LEADERS UNDER THE PRETENCE OF CORRUPTION. BUT HE DID THAT AS HIS CHOSEN METHOD TO CONSOLIDATE HIS HOLD TO POWER. THE TRUE WICKEDNESS OF HIS REGIME REVEALED AFTER TAKEN OVER FROM LIMAN. MANY GHANAIANS WERE ELIMINATED OPENLY AND SECRETLY FROM THE SOCIETY.THIS EVENTUALLY CAUSED TREMENDOUS FEAR IN PEOPLE TO CONDEMN OR CRITICISE HIS GOVERNMENT. SOME OF THE SHOCKING KILLINGS INCLUDE REV. BROTHER KUKA OF NATIONAL CATHOLIC SECRETARIAT. MANY IN GHANA COULD EASILY INTERPRETED THAT HEINOUS KILLING AS INTENDED FOR ARCHBISHOP PALMER BUCKLE WHO WAS THE EDITOR OF CATHOLIC STANDARD, WHICH MOST CRITICISED JJ 2ND REGIME THAN ANY OTHER. AS JJ REGIME FOUGHT HARD TO SURVIVE THE OPPOSITION MANY CONTINUED TO BE KILLED UNDER THE GUISE OF DEFENDING A REVOLUTION AGAINST CORRUPTION IN GHANA. UNFORTUNATELY, JJ REGIME WHICH COULD BE BETTER SUSTAINED BY NEPOTISM AND HEGEMONY DEVELOPED ANOTHER CROP OF CORRUPTION SO ENDEMIC AND HARD TO UPROOT FROM THE SOCIETY. CORRUPTION SINCE THEN HAS BECOME A GOVERNMENT MACHINERY BY POLITICAL GANGISSM TO EXPLOIT THE MASSES. THE MOST WICKED AND THE MOST ATROCIOUS ATTEMPT BY JJ REGIME TO ELIMINATE ANY OPPOSITION TO AUTHORITARIAN REGIME WAS THE ABDUCTION AND THE KILLING OF THE THREE HIGH COURT JUDGES INCLUDING A NURSING MOTHER OF ONE MONTH BABY AND A RETIRED ARMY OFFICER. THE CRIME WAS COMMITTED BY THE TOP RANKING MEMBERS OF HIS REGIME. THERE WAS GREAT AMOUNT OF INFORMATION TO INDICATE THAT ALL OR ALMOST ALL THE TOP MEMBERS WERE AWARE ABOUT THE CRIME BEFORE THEY WERE COMMITTED. THOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE THE CRIME WAS INTENDED TO SHOW GHANAIANS ABOUT HOW WICKED THE REGIME COULD BE TO SILENCE THE REST OF THE PEOPLE, IT RATHER ENDANGERED GHANAIANS TO BECOME MORE AGGRESSIVE TO END AUTHORITARIAN RULE. AT THIS TIME MORE OF HIGH INTELLECTUALS LIKE PROF. ADU BOAHENE ASSUMED THE FRONT ROLE. THE STRUGGLE RECEIVE MORE INTERNATIONAL AND JJ COULD DO NOTHING BUT BOW OUT TO CONSTITUTIONAL RULE. THE CHARACTER OF JJ SHOW THAT GHANAIANS ARE VERY COURAGEOUS TO FIGHT AUTHORITARIAN RULE. JJ IS A KIND OF CHARACTER WHO LOVE POWER AND WOULD GO TO ANY EXTENT, THE MOST EVIL WAY TO GET IT. FIRST HE KILLED LEADERS NOT WHEN IN WAR OR CONFLICT. HE OVERTHREW LIMAN WITH NO TANGIBLE REASON. WHEN GHANAIAN HAD SHOWN CLEARLY TO BE DEMOCRATIC HE PRETENDED TO BE DEMOCRATIC, JUST TO STAY IN POWER. HIS ATTACK ON KUFOUR, MILLS, MAHAMA REVEAL THE SPIRIT IN HIM. HE CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY IT IS ANOTHER PERSON AND NOT HIM. HE PRETEND TO BE DIFFERENT WITH AKUFFO ADDO BECAUSE HE IS NOW AFRAID. MANY IN GHANA HAS COME TO KNOW HIM WELL. HE IS NOW CHALLENGE FROM HIS OWN PARTY AND OUTSIDE HIS OWN. WHEN HE NOTICED THAT MANY GHANAIANS WANTED TO BE DEMOCRATIC HE PRETENDED TO BE ONE. NOW HE KNOWS MANY GHANAIANS ARE FOR AKKUFFO ADDO SO HE PRETENDS TO LIKE AKUFO ADDO. MAY GOD BLESS OUR HEROES WHO HAVE FOUGHT TO MAKE GHANA WHAT GOD WANTS IT TO BE FOR US. TODAY WE SEE A NEW TREND OF HEROISM. NOT A FIGHT AGAINST AUTHORITARIAN BUT A FIGHT AGAINST PRODUCT OF AUTHORITARIANISM WHICH IS CORRUPTION. I KNOW THIS SAME GOD WILL SEE US THROUGH. MAY GOD BLESS THE LEADERSHIP OF NANA AND ALL WHO SHARE THIS NOBLE MIND. GOD BLESS YOU, SAINT NANA ADDO.
Let those who do not want to listen block their ears. There are others who either want to learn history or who were there and remember the events and the importance of what a few brave people did. Especially those who at first supported the "revolution" but were honest enough to look, learn, change their minds and admit they had made a mistake. People should stop bringing their stories about "those who didn't cause coup for anybody lived in peace and are still living in peace". There were plenty people living quietly and earning a decent living for themselves who got hauled out of their houses at all times of day and shaved, beaten, whipped, tortured and even killed. Most of them were not coup-makers.
So what were all these "Ewes from Togo", Kwasi Agbley, Stanley Armattoe, Nat Ayivor, doing fighting for democracy in our Ghana?
Should you rape a rap ist to prove that the one you raped raped someone?
Should you rape a ***barred word*** to prove that the one you raped raped someone?
Do Ghanaians and the NPP remember Mawuli Gokah? May he rest in peace. Others have laboured and we share the glory.
My friend you don't know where I am writing from so stop you unnecessary extrapolation. In this modern era, tell me where in the world people don't have voices to speak. The gentleman is preparing to write and sell his book, and you are also saying what you don't know. He is quick in saying what he suffered but the evils he did, he is not saying it. Even up till now, he still condemns rawlings. You try to stage a coup detat and you failed and was arrested, did you want them to allow you to walk in the streets of Accra. People don't argue in context. The fact is if he had not attempted coup, no one would have imprisoned him. Those who didn't attempt coup were living peacefully. Two wrongs do not make right, jj and his group stage a coup to power, that didn't mean you should also try one. If you died, you would have died a fuuuullish death.
Well done Malik Baako. Go bless you and your compatriots for strengthening our young democracy. Honour is due the likes of you before the almighty calls you. Society and our institutions like our universities should not wait till its too late to honour you.
I doubt whether you lived during the days of the 31 December revolution. You now have a voice and can vent your opinion on national issues without been arrested, detained or killed. The days when the country went hungry and some of our countrymen died because of hunger. Some of us although young were witnesses. Uncle Kweku and other gallant men and women sacrificed for the democracy we have now. I salute them and will be forever grateful to them.