By Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jr., Ph.D.
Garden City, New York
Nov. 27, 2015
E-mail: okoampaahoofe@optimum.net

I have read the Government’s version of the Nov. 23 break-in of the Asylum Down Headquarters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Ghana’s most formidable opposition party, and not convinced that the Flagstaff House operatives are telling the truth about precisely what happened. So far, the Mahama-led government of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) claims that it was not behind the raid that resulted in the reported arrests of some 12 people, all of them believed to be members of the New Patriotic Party. As of this writing, Minister of Communications Edward Omane-Boamah had released an intemperate statement virulently accusing the Akufo-Addo-led NPP of “routinely dabbling in anti-government propaganda” (See “NPP Headquarters Now Outpost of Lawlessness – Gov’t” Graphic.com.gh / Ghanaweb.com 11/27/15).

Among other things, Dr. Omane-Boamah asserted the following in his press statement: “For the avoidance of doubt, Government wishes to place on record that this claim [of the NDC’s being behind the NPP’s headquarters raid] is a deliberate fabrication… calculated at shifting blame for the horrendous leadership it has had leading to its rapid descent into chaos, violence, lawlessness, brutal killings and total confusion the last year or so.” Such pontifical and downright self-righteous mischaracterization of the New Patriotic Party’s leadership is quite fascinating, if only because it was the same Dr. Omane-Boamah who publicly, flatly and rudely refused to answer any questions about the brutal assassination of the Nkwanta-South’s District Chief Executive, gunned down while exiting from his officially designated vehicle about a year ago, from the 2016 Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party.
We must also quickly add, at least in passing, that the slain man was directly appointed from the Flagstaff House by President John Dramani Mahama. Rather than directly and responsibly updating the Ghanaian public vis-à-vis the state of investigations into the death of the Nkwanta-South DCE, Dr. Omane-Boamah churlishly directed Nana Akufo-Addo to the Accra Headquarters of the Criminal Investigations Division (CID) of the Ghana Police Service (GPS). This is clearly a man who does not care a whit about the rank atmosphere of lawlessness and brutal political killings fostered and systematically and deliberately nurtured by his own government. We must also significantly point out that the questions surrounding the brutal assassination of the Nkwanta-South DCE came to the fore of media discussion in the wake of the equally brutal assassination of Mr. Adams Mahama, then-Upper-East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, this past May. Dr. Omane-Boamah and his cynical associates, including Messrs. Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, Kofi Adams and Koku Anyidoho, had hoped to make cheap political capital out of this most heinous and tragic act of criminality.

We must also note, for the public record, that at the time of the slaying of the Nkwanta-South District Chief Executive, the National Democratic Congress’ Member of Parliament for Nkwanta-South was widely quoted in the media to be saying that the eerie incidence of targeted political killings was apt to get even worse in the aforementioned constituency. The MP did not publicly let on upon what basis he had predicated such bleak prognosis. In short, what we have here are the key operatives of a government with decades-long track-record of political killings whose main dietary agenda revolves strictly around the sort of mayhem and carnage that Dr. Omane-Boamah is so shamelessly pretending his boss and the Government are averse to.

We must also, once again, state for the record that the prime suspect in the brutal acid-dousing assassination of Mr. Adams Mahama, who is presently standing trial for his lead role in the murder of the latter, is Mr. Gregory Afoko, the younger brother of Mr. Paul Afoko, the recently indefinitely suspended National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, whose fierce street and legal battles to be reinstated, against the resolute decisions of all the authoritative bodies of the party, have been staunchly and publicly backed by National Democratic Congress leaders ranging from President John Dramani Mahama, Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, Kofi Adams and Kojo/Kwadwo Twum-Boafo, head of the so-called Free Zones Board.

On an electioneering campaign tour of his party’s electoral stronghold of the Volta Region recently, for example, President Mahama was widely reported to have taunted the leadership of his political rivals of the main opposition New Patriotic Party by snarling thusly: “Who is your Chairman?” Now, add to the preceding sally the fact that there is strong circumstantial evidence linking Mr. Afoko to the murder of Mr. Adams Mahama and judge for yourself whether, indeed, it is farfetched for some of the Akufo-Addo loyalists among the ranks of the New Patriotic Party to accuse President Mahama and his associates and minions of being behind the recent military raid of the national headquarters of the country’s main opposition political party.