General News of Saturday, 26 January 2002

Source: .

Kasotie Odikro denies allegation of misappropriation

Nana Kwame Adjei, Odikro of Kasotie, a predominantly farming community near Nyinahin in the Atwima District of Ashanti had denied misappropriating seven million cedis given to the village by Franco Timbers, a Kumasi-based Timber Company, for the rehabilitation of the road in the village.

He said the money, which he solicited from the Timber Company, was for the construction of a school and that the company gave him five million cedis, leaving a balance of two million cedis.

Nana Adjei, who is also the Adontenhene of Nkawie-Panin, said the five million cedis was used to cater for the contractor and his workers, who put up the primary school under the European Union Micro Project, for which he was commended by the former District Chief Executive for Atwima.

He said it was, therefore, not correct that he had misappropriated money meant for the rehabilitation of the road in the village as was alleged by the youth. On the scuffle with some of the youth over the money, Nana Adjei said on January 2, at about 1900 hours he heard his daughter quarrelling outside the house so he called her into the house.

He said his house immediately came under a hail of stones one of which hit his son Kwame Poku, who sustained a cut on the forehead. When his wife asked to know those, who were throwing the stones he said, one John Obeng rained insults on her and dared her to come out and face him.

Nana Adjei said he was just in time to see Obeng raising a cutlass to slash his wife so he held him and collected the cutlass from him and that while still holding Obeng, one Kwaku Thomas came from behind and grabbed him enabling Obeng to escape.

He said he sent his son to the Nyinahin Government Hospital for treatment and consequently lodged a complaint at the Nyinahin Police Station and continued to Nkawie.

Nana Adjei said the next day he went to the Nkawie Police Station to arrange for Police to go to the village to arrest Obeng and Kwaku Thomas when some of the youth also came to Nkawie to report to the Akwamuhene, Nana Kwaku Duah, who is acting as the chief pending the installation of a new chief.

He said it was, therefore, not true that he fled Kasotie and also not true that two people were on admission at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) following the scuffle.

Nana Yaw Gyamfi, a linguist of Kasotie and Mr Abraham Owusu Junior, Assemblyman for Kasotie collaborated Nana Adjei's story.