Popular theories for John Kumah’s demise

The demise of John Kumah, the former Deputy Minister of Finance and legislator for the Ejisu constituency, has sent chills down the spines of many Ghanaians and left the nation in mourning.

According to reports, the deputy minister met his untimely death while he was being transported from his constituency to Accra for medical treatment. While on his way to Accra on Thursday, March 7, 2024, John Kumah’s condition, according to reports, became very critical.

Consequently, the ambulance had to make a stop at the Suhum Government Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Following news of his demise, a lot of theories have emerged seeking to explain the cause of the legislator’s death.

We explore some of the most popular conspiracy theories amplified by individuals.

That John Kumah was killed by a curse

Although John Kumah was said to be battling health issues and had plans to leave Ghana for treatment, some Ghanaians believe that his death was not caused by a medical condition. Instead, they speculate that it was a result of a curse pronounced on him by an old woman whose land he was accused of stealing.

This claim is deeply rooted in a viral social media video where an old lady was captured cursing and summoning the late minister to ‘Antoa’, a popular river deity in the Ashanti Region.

In the said video which surfaced on the internet in July 2023, the elderly woman was filmed screaming and labelling the late deputy minister a thief.

The crying old woman alleged that John Kumah acquired her land under the pretence of a government project, but instead, he was using it for his private business. The visibly upset woman passionately demanded the return of her land, expressing her outrage and determination to expose the deputy minister’s actions.

Some people on social media have linked John Kumah’s death to the innocent tears the woman shed despite not providing evidence to back the claim.

That he was killed through poisoning

The theory that the late John Kumah was poisoned is arguably the most famous conspiracy theory. The seed for this theory was first sown and became popular on February 21, 2024, when Onua TV published a video where Captain Smart, a presenter with the media outlet, alleged that the deputy finance minister was severely suffering because he had been poisoned.

Smart also mentioned that other politicians who were targeted should be watchful, alleging that the conspirators had plans and schemes to defame and assassinate the unnamed politicians.

When news of John Kumah's demise went viral, Smart's video began trending.

The claim by Captain Smart was then revisited by Oheneba Nana Asiedu, the aide of the Ashanti Regional Chairman for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako (Chairman Wontumi).

Asiedu recounted that John Kumah’s health battles began after the legislator and the NPP Chairman were served guinea fowl and a corn meal popularly known as ‘Tuo Zaafi’ in October 2023 when they went to Tamale to campaign and that was the beginning of the woes.

According to Asiedu, a nurse who attended to the duo when they exhibited signs of illness after consuming the meal suspected poisoning. Asiedu in his narrative said he was sure someone intentionally poisoned the food with the intent to cause harm and kill.

He said: "After the rounds, immediately they got to the hotel, someone brought guinea fowl meat to only Chairman and John Kumah. And being a campaign season, sometimes, they leave home around 4 or 5 and so haven’t eaten. And so they ate it, but under normal circumstances, when we return from such rounds, we all sit together to eat, possibly in one of the MPs’ houses, like a buffet, but this one, because we did not project to sleep, we could not make arrangements for food of that sort and so when they got to the hotel, that was when the guinea fowl meat was brought for John Kumah and Chairman, and then later, they brought them Tuo Zaafi to eat. That was when the issue started,” he said in Twi.

Asiedu continued to explain that by the next morning, when he woke up intending to go get Chairman Wontumi ready for the day’s activities, he realised he had missed about 15 calls from his boss.

“When I got to Charman’s door, knowing him as someone who would have quickly opened up for me, I knocked and knocked for a while, close to about 5 minutes before he came to the door. When Chairman came to the door, he was spotting only a boxer short and from what I saw, he crawled to be able to come and open the door. He had vomited on his bed and on the floor and in the washroom too, he had vomited all over the floor.

“When I went to John, he told me this is what had happened to Chairman and that Chairman had eaten the food too much because he was hungry, but as for him, he only ate something small and so he had vomited too, but it was unlike that of Chairman. I have walked with Chairman for 4 years but I had never seen Chairman the way he was on that 23rd October…” he added.

While it is unclear whether it was an act of food poisoning or the food was poisoned, it is worth noting that, Apostle Mrs Lilian Kumah, the widow of John Kumah has petitioned the Ghana Police Service to launch an investigation into the claims made by Captain Smart.

EAN/BB

Click here to follow the GhanaWeb General News WhatsApp channel

Ghana’s leading digital news platform, GhanaWeb, in conjunction with the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, is embarking on an aggressive campaign which is geared towards ensuring that parliament passes comprehensive legislation to guide organ harvesting, organ donation, and organ transplantation in the country.