Information reaching DAILY GUIDE indicates that there are suspicions that the snatching of the V8 Land Cruiser belonging to New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate in the 2008 elections, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, by security operatives from the Castle, was for purposes of a voodoo ritual.

The sources who spoke to DAILY GUIDE yesterday claimed that efforts were being made to use spiritual forces to turn the NPP flagbearer into a moron or ‘jimi jimi’.

“They need a piece of material close to him and with that they can perform certain rituals for the purpose of killing his interest in politics and especially his presidential ambitions for 2012”, the sources indicated.

The vehicle seized by national security operatives is still in the custody of the state (as at Monday morning). The Toyota Land Cruiser was confiscated while undergoing maintenance at a garage in Accra.

Mustapha Hamid, spokesperson for Nana Addo, said attempts to retrieve the vehicle had proved futile.

He said officials at the Presidency claimed there were irregularities in the documents covering the vehicle.

The vehicle, according to him, was still parked in a garage at the “Castle Annex” awaiting further scrutiny of documents covering it.

Sources close to the Presidency said the vehicle would only be returned to the former NPP presidential candidate after investigations into its acquisition were completed.

Suspicions of using the car for spiritual purposes aside, some had even suggested that Nana Addo should dash the car to President Atta Mills, his former Hall mate at the University of Ghana, Legon, since his administration desperately needed vehicles in order to put a stop to the indiscriminate seizure of cars belonging to private individuals.

Last Tuesday, the Land Cruiser was towed away from a mechanic’s workshop at La in Accra amidst protests that all the documents showed the vehicle belonged to Nana Akufo-Addo and not the state.

Details of the vehicle showed that it was manufactured in 2004 and imported into Ghana in 2007 at the cost of GH¢10,270.50.

It was cleared on 15th August 2007 and transferred to Nana Akufo-Addo’s name on November 20, 2007.

Though the available documents had been submitted to the National Security headquarters, it appeared not to convince the authorities to release the vehicle.

A certain Herbert Krampa, an aide to Nana Akufo-Addo, was amazed at the turn of events because according to him, there was nothing to show that the vehicle belonged to the Castle.

“I have all the authentic documents covering the vehicle, insurance papers, etc. It was shipped down on August 9, 2007 and received on the 16th from the shipping agent and it is a private vehicle used by Nana Akufo-Addo”.

Herbert told DAILY GUIDE on Friday that he did not understand why Mills’ boys were holding on to the vehicle.

Rituals appear to have gained a major foothold on the political terrain as deduced from revelations of a section of local pastors in their interpretations of the increase in motor accidents in the country recently.

Some of these pastors had pointed accusing fingers at politicians, whom ignored all ethos and went ahead to consult with voodoo experts even across the country’s borders.

One of Nana Addo’s Four Wheel Drive vehicles was seized by Castle operatives earlier and at a time that Nana himself was abroad, raising eyebrows.

When the car was returned, many asked that the vehicle be sent for electronic sweeping as they suspected it could have been mischievously tampered with by national security apparatus. Nana has since abandoned the said vehicle for security reasons.

This latest operation was directed by a certain DSP Amaning of the Castle Annex who in turn claimed later that he was acting upon orders from un-named superiors.

The latest seizure was the second to have been carried out by national security operatives in like manner since President John Mills assumed office on January 7, 2009.

The first vehicle was returned to the former presidential candidate a week after its seizure with tons of apologies from NDC government that it had been mistaken for a state property.

Following these incidents, members of the opposition NPP had accused the government of embarking on ‘political persecution’.

Nana Addo’s running mate during the 2008 elections, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, suffered a similar ordeal in Tamale when his vehicle was taken away for a thorough search upon a tip-off communicated from the Bureau of National Investigations in Accra.

Officials of the bureau said they had suspicion Dr. Bawumia had been carrying weapons in his vehicle.