Ex-Minister Goes Berserk

Days after he was sacked from President Kufuor's team of ministers, the former minister of energy is alleged to have beaten up the Navrongo zonal Organizer of the People's National Convention (PNC), Anani Adeyiga Tampoli.

Narrating his ordeal to The Chronicle at the Navrongo War Memorial Hospital, where he had gone to seek medical care after the attack, Mr. Anani alleged that on March, 25, 2008, at about 6:15pm, Hon Joseph Kofi Adda, the dismissed energy minister and MP for Navrongo Central stopped him on his way to a party meeting. Lawyer Scott Gabriel Pwamoang, PNC parliamentary candidate for Navrongo central, had called the meeting. The venue of the meeting was Tono, near Navrongo. He alleged that when Hon. Adda met him and some three youngsters on their way to the said meeting, he (Adda) asked the youngsters whether they were really in Anani's company.

When they answered in affirmative, the MP told them that they were in the company of a real criminal who could ruin their future. Mr. Anani said he earlier took Adda's comments as a joke, but little did he know that he was up to something sinister. According to the victim, the MP accused him vehemently of celebrating over his dismissal as energy minister. He also accused him of being responsible for his dismissal. The victim said he then questioned the MP whether he was the one who appointed him as energy minister to merit his claim that he was responsible for his dismissal.This chain of questions angered the stoutly built MP who gave a hefty blow to the face of the victim, thus sending him to the ground. He alleged that after the MP had struck him down, some thugs emerged from the bush and started beating him up. "I received so much beatings but nobody was around to rescue me", Anani said. According to him, the three youngsters who were with him could not come to his rescue because they were scared when they saw what was happening to him." The 49-year-old farmer alleged that Hon Adda then stamped on his loin and ordered his men to stop beating him.

When they were leaving the scene, the MP realized that he could not get up so he came back and lifted him up, but another member of his gang also came back and gave him another hefty blow, sending him on the ground again. The MP then asked them to stop beating him but warned him never to let anyone know that he was involved. He also asked him to take it as a good lession in his life. Anani alleged that the MP told him there was going to be blood shed in Navrongo and people like him must be eliminated. According to the victim, the thugs numbered over ten but he could only identify two of them. He gave their names as Weyire Wedia and Awumuri Abapoli. He said Wedia told him that Hon Adda invited him to come and beat him up. He warned him that the next time they grab him they would use cutlasses on him. When this reporter visited the Navrongo District Police station at about 10:35 am yesterday, the District Commander ASP Mr. Daniels Dery confirmed that the story had been reported to his office on that fateful day.

ASP Dery said they issued a medical form to the victim to attend hospital. But he would not give details of the matter "because it carries political tone". He said he had dispatched his officers to get the MP's response to the allegation. All efforts to contact Hon Adda on phone for his side of the story proved futile. He did not pick several calls this reporter put through to his cellular phone.