How Otumfuo tied his ascension to Kufuor’s electoral victory in 1999

Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has linked his becoming King of Ashanti to former president John Agyekum Kufuor’s political fortunes.

Otumfuo ascended the throne in 1999, a year before the 2000 elections in which Kufuor defeated late John Evans Atta Mills to become first opposition candidate to win an election under the Fourth Republic.

Otumfuo, whiles speaking at an event this week in Oxford to honour Kufuor noted that the former president did not even have money to prosecute his dreams of becoming president.

“This is a man who didn’t have money and even his party executives gave up on him to become a president and yet destiny had it that he was going to be president and he became the president.

“In 1999, I became the King of Ashanti and then he was also aspiring to be president of Ghana, so, sometime in November, he came to me and we sat down, and I said, you know what, no that I am here, you are going to be president,” Otumfuo told an audience.

Kufuor served as president for two terms between 2001 and 2009 before handing over to John Evans Atta Mills who he had defeated twice in 2000 and 2004 at the polls.

Watch Otumfuo’s testimony below: