Agyepong Breaks Silence On Adams' Death

BELEAGUERED New Patriotic Party (NPP) General Secretary, Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, has broken his silence on a recent trip that he and Paul Afoko, party chairman, made to Bolgatanga which ended up creating confusion between them and the late Upper East Regional Chairman of the party, Adams Mahama.

The NPP chief scribe had kept mute over the issue for some time now but he finally stated his side of the story when he was addressing NPP constituency chairmen in Kumasi at the Great Asor Hotel at Asokwa.

Adams Mahama was murdered in cold blood through acid attack in Bolgatanga, the Upper East Regional capital, on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 when he was about to enter his house.

Gregory Afoko, brother of the NPP national chairman, Paul Afoko, has been arrested as a prime suspect and had been put before court on murder charges.

According to Kwabena Agyepong, he and Paul Afoko travelled to Bolgatanga in the interest of the NPP, pointing out that he (Agyepong) talked about grass roots organisation whilst Paul Afoko also preached about party unity when they met with party people in Tamale before heading for Bolga.

He said they were supposed to address the party faithful in the Upper East Regional capital on the same issue but sadly, Chairman Adams Mahama, who had labelled him (Agyepong) and Paul Afoko as anti-Nana Akufo-Addo crusaders, ensured that the Bolga meeting didn't take place.

Mr Agyepong, who obviously was seeking the support of the party chairmen to stay in power in view of avalanche of calls for his resignation together with the national chairman, recounted how the late Adams Mahama openly chastised Paul Afoko whom he accused of working to frustrate Nana Akufo-Addo's presidential ambition before they travelled from Accra.

'Chairman Afoko, do you think the party belongs to you? You are sabotaging Nana Akufo-Addo. Today you people will see. There will be bloodshed at Bolgatanga,' Kwabena Agyepong quoted Adams Mahama as uttering these words at the Kotoka International Airport before their departure to Tamale enroute Bolga.

He claimed that he had witnesses who could attest to the fact that Adams Mahama issued those threats at them, adding that he was shocked to the marrow about the sudden behaviour of the late NPP chairman 'because I had a hearty chat with him the previous day in my office.'

Mr Kwabena Agyepong said he and Afoko travelled on the same airline with Adams Mahama to Tamale where the party executives, except Bugri Naabu, Northern Regional chairman, accorded them a rousing welcome.

He said the meeting at Tamale was massively graced and the discussions were held in a peaceful atmosphere. 'I spoke at length about party organisation at the grass roots level whilst Paul Afoko addressed them on party unity and oneness,' the NPP General Secretary averred.

According to him, before they travelled to Bolgatanga, the party's national organiser called to tell them that Adams Mahama had called to warn that it was not safe for them to travel to his area and organise a meeting.

He said on their way to Bolgatanga, they heard reports that Adams Mahama had tried to disrupt the meeting and had organised people to beat the regional organiser of the party.

On a second thought, Mr Agyepong said, whilst they were proceeding from Tamale to Bolgatanga he advised Afoko that they should rather go and report at the police station instead of going to the event venue due to security reasons.

Machomen
He claimed they were at the police station when Adams Mahama stormed there with 30 'machomen' (stoutly-built persons) whom the police had to fire tear gas at to get them to leave their compound.

Agyepong said Adams Mahama eventually met him and Afoko in the presence of the regional police commander and the late Adams' behaviour nearly resulted in a fight between him (Adams) and the police chief.

The chief scribe said he even begged the police commander not to arrest Adams Mahama. 'They tried arresting him for misbehaving but I begged them not to do so just to have my peace,' he underscored.

'You know my Kumasi fufu eating story was still making the news so I didn't want to cause any more stir,' he said, adding, 'I would have been in great trouble, had the police arrested Adams. The party people would have accused me of causing his arrest.'

Agyepong Boys Arrested
Meanwhile, two supposed activists of the NPP in the Prestea/Bogoso constituency of the Western Region, who claimed they are supporters of Kwabena Agyepong, have been arrested by the Bogoso police, Emmanuel Opoku reports from Takoradi.

The two, whose names were not immediately known, were arrested after they had allegedly rained unprintable insults on Nana Akufo-Addo, the party's flagbearer, at a radio programme on Best Fm at Bogoso on Saturday.

According to sources, the two were among about six people claiming to have been sent by Kwabena Agyepong to say that Nana Akufo-Addo was behind the recent passing of vote of no confidence in Paul Afoko and him (Agyepong) by the regional executives of the party.

FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi