A.K. Mensah and K. Atuahene, were National Democratic Congress (NDC) activists, but recent events show that they are agents of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). They are known to have been the pets of all Ashanti Regional Executives of the NDC but they are also known to have hounded out of office Mr Frank Osei Mensah, first NDC Chairman for the Ashanti Region.

They consistently pestered and harassed Mr Ohene Agyekum when he was the Ashanti Regional Minister. The two traitors made life very, very difficult for Mr P.E.K. Antwi, who succeeded Mr Osei Mensah as the Regional Chairman of the party.

Mensah and Atuahene’s modus operandi was to come to Accra to tell fanciful stories about the Regional Executives and party dignitaries in Ashanti. In the process, they succeed in convincing leading members of the National Executive about their bona fides and set them on collision course against the Regional Executives.

Somewhere along the line, they became very close confidants of Dr Obed Asamoah, but it did not take long for Dr Asamoah to see them for what they were and they soon parted ways. When it appeared there was a rift between Dr Asamoah and former President Rawlings, the two traitors quickly aligned themselves with the staff of the former President’s household.

The two in a very cunning manner wormed their way into the confidence of Mr Victor Smith, the Personal Assistant to the former President. So when A.K. Mensah approached Victor Smith to assist him to write an open letter to certain Journalists who have been using abusive language against former President Rawlings, the latter did not suspect any treachery.

Having discussed the outline of the proposed open letter, Victor Smith then put down the points of the letter, which A.K. Mensah took away. Whether A.K. Mensah took the letter to the intelligence agencies, who also leaked the contents to Kwaku Baako or vice versa, we don’t know but somehow, the document got to Kwaku Baako.

The intelligence agencies then launched on onslaught against Victor Smith which was joined by Mr Jake Obetseibi-Lamptey, Minister of Information and Mrs Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, President of The Ghana Journalists Association several other Journalists and commentators also jumped on the band.

As at now, Ghana Palaver sources indicate that the said, A.K. Mensah is being kept in a safe house by the intelligence agencies while his internal NDC opponents in Kumasi have all been systematically picked up and interrogated. It is suspected that their names were given to the intelligence agencies by A.K. Mensah, however, the fanciful story put out was that they were arrested for suspected involvement in coup plot.

Those arrested, detained, interrogated and subsequently released included Mohammed Sanni the Chairman of Ashanti Regional NDC Re-organisation Committee and Ex-WOI Imoro Salifu, NDC activist in Kumasi.

As at Monday evening, the Ghana Palaver was reliably informed that Alhaji Awudu Ariff Abubakari, the former Ashanti Regional Organiser of the NDC was to report to the BNI on Tuesday 2 April 2002. Anybody who knows anything about the internal NDC politics in Ashanti, would know that there was no way those people who were arrested and interrogated, sworn enemies of A.K. Mensah, can ever conspire with him for any purpose whatsoever.

This is what makes statements attributed to them during interrogation highly suspect. Ghana Palaver is still monitoring events as they unfold.