<<Print>>

A leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Dr Arthur Kennedy has opined that President J.E.A.Mills should not be hailed as a hero in the resolution of the Ivorian crisis after he undermined the integrity of Africa Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). According to him, President Mills by publicly declaring his opposition to AU and ECOWAS decision to use military force encouraged Laurent Gbagbo to illegitimately hold himself out as President of Cote d'Ivoire. Dr. Arthur Kennedy said the president rather played a negative role in resolving the Ivorian impasse. His comments comes after the Director of Communications at the Presidency, Koku Anyidoho disclosed that President Mills impressed upon the head of the Ivorian Constitutional Court, Paul Yao N'dre to swear in President Ouattara as the new Ivorian leader. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also praised President Mills in his intervention in the post-election crisis in Cote d�Ivoire describing him as one of the best presidents in Africa when he made a stopover in Ghana over the weekend en route to Ivory Coast for the investiture of Mr Ouattara. But Dr. Arthur Kennedy on Asempa FM on Tuesday said that the president�s decision was flawed because it was the same military option which he rejected led to the ousting of Laurent Gbagbo. He added that President Mills' decision not to send troops to Cote d'Ivoire �was a slap in the face of 50 years of Ghana�s intervening foreign policies�. He argued that, the purported intervention by President Mills which came only after Laurent Gbagbo�s ousting could not be considered critical since the country with the backing of the international community, could have used other legal means to swear in Mr. Ouattara even if Paul Yao N'Dre, had refused to perform the investiture. Dr. Arthur Kennedy believes President Goodluck Jonathan, Raila Odinga and France President Nicolas Sarkozy deserve much more commendation for the pivotal role they played in the Ivorian impasse. He observed given the actions of President Mills, it is very difficult to justify the honor bestowed on him by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.