.....Over Their Support For Kennedy Agyapong

By Cecil Mensah

It appears the cost and effect of foul-mouthed Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin North Constituency, Kennedy Agyapong’s ethnocentric incitement to kill both Gas and Ewes in the Ashanti Region, will truly be felt when the New Patriotic Party (NPP) takes stock of its performance at the December 2012 general elections.

Already, his lawyer, Nii Ayikoi Otoo, who is an indigenous Ga and the NPP parliamentary candidate for the Krowor Constituency in the Greater Accra Region, might start counting his loss as some youth in Nungua, have vowed to teach him a lesson for jumping to the rescue of Mr. Agyapong, who has earned himself various nicknames, including “Dompem Butcher”.

The Herald can report that there is anger brewing in the predominantly Ga communities, especially along the coastal areas against notable NPP personalities such as National Chairman Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, ex-National Party Chairman Fred Odoi Sykes, Mike Ocquaye, Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe, I.C Qyuaye, Adjgyiri Blankson, Ishmael Ashitey among others.

While some are accused of sitting on the fence unconcerned, others such as Obetsebi-Lamptey, Mike Ocquaye and I.C Qyuaye, are being damned for declaring their unflinching support for their genocidal assailant.

They argue that the NPP has shown through both its utterances and action that Gas don’t matter in the party, citing some instances mostly in the Kufuor era, to justify this position.

According to them, ex-President Kufuor sacked Gas he appointed to very influential positions during his tenure and replaced them with Akans.

They mentioned how Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey was sacked from the Castle as Kufuror’s first Chief of Staff and replaced with Kwame Okyere Mpiani from Jamase in the Ashanti Region.

Later, the late Peter Ala Adjetey, who was Speaker of Parliament, from La, was also shamefully sacked and replaced with Ebenezer Begyina Sekyi-Hughes.

Ayikoi Otoo, himself was unceremoniously sacked as Attorney-General and Minister of Justice by Kufuor and replaced with Mr. Joe Ghartey, who is many years his junior at the Bar.

Mike Ocquaye was pushed to India as Ghana’s High Commissioner by then President Kufuor when he dared to contest the National Chairmanship slot to replace Mr. Odoi-Sykes. Haruna Esseku, who was Mr. Kufuor‘s choice ended up embarrassing the President when he accused him of hijacking kickbacks received from contractors and other businessmen who rendered one service or the other to the government.

Recently, when the issue of selecting a running-mate for NPP flagbearer Nana Akufo-Addo came up, the Minority Leader and MP for Suame in the Ashanti Region, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, declared Gas unfit for the slot, saying the party was not ready for them.

The Nungua youth group accused Nii Ayikoi Otoo, of throwing moral values to the dogs, and jumping to the defense of a man who had asked for the slaughtering of Gas domiciled in the Ashanti Region.

The group led by Tennis Wesley Afotey, the Campaign Chairman of Mr. Theophilus Mensah Boye, an independent parliamentary candidate for Krowor Constituency, said at the time all well-meaning Ghanaians including the clergy were condemning the hate speech on Gas and Ewes, NPP stalwarts, ironically Gas, were jubilating and hailing the misfit as a hero.

In reference to the ex-Justice Minister, Mr. Afotey asked: “who will vote for him in the 2012 parliamentary elections; a man who can’t stand up for his people, but will rather lead the enemy against them?”

In reference to ex-Minister, “who would vote for him in the 2012 parliamentary elections; a man who can’t stand up for his people but will lead the enemy against them? Mr. Afotey asked.

He said it is about time lawyer Ayikoi Otoo, be reminded that all well meaning Gas as well as Ewes take exception to the statement of Mr. Agyapong’s genocidal language and it was professionally unwise for an indigenous Ga like him to be seen defending the very person, who has called for the killing of his (Otoo’s) own people.

Mr. Afotey, made this statement in an exclusive interview with The Herald at his base in Nungua, a suburb of Accra where the ex-Minister is trying for the second time running to be made a parliamentarian.

“Mr. Otoo’s action of defending Mr. Agyapong over his genocidal statement smacks of a subtle support for the foul comment against Gas in this country”, Mr. Afotey argued.

He stressed that the chiefs and people of Nugua, particularly the electorates, take a strong exception to the conduct of the lawyer and very soon they would stage a massive demonstration against his parliamentary candidature in the area.

He noted that lawyer Otoo, who is seeking to lead the people of Krowor, an indigenous Ga area, should be seen fighting ethnic aggression against his people and not hiding behind his profession to betray them.

He said lawyer Otoo’s action is a betrayal of the people of Krowor, and called on well-meaning Gas in the NPP to reject him.

He threatened to rally a vast majority of the youth in Nungua to stage a massive demonstration against the parliamentary candidature of Lawyer Otoo, until he rescinds his decision of defending someone, who had declared war on his (Otoo’s) own people.

He said that had Ashantis carried out the genocidal incitements of Mr. Agyapong against Gas, who would have been left to vote him (Otoo) into the law-making House?

He questioned whether Mr. Otoo wants to be the Member of Parliament (MP) for his parochial interest and the prestige of being an MP or to honestly serve his people?

“Is this a man who wants to represent his people in Parliament selflessly or he has other parochial interests?” Mr. Afotey asked.

He alleged that they are reliably informed that Mr. Otoo is one of the NPP stalwarts who are pushing Mr. Agyapong not to apologize for the hate speech he made against the vast majority of Gas and Ewes across the country.

It would be recalled that Mr. Agyapong, on Friday 13, April 2012 went haywire on his own ‘’Oman FM”, radio station and “declared war” against all Gas and Ewes living in the Ashanti Region, asking Ashantis to exterminate them.