Kennedy Agyapong did not say kill Gas, Ewes - Witness

Samuel Wiredu Amoh, a translator of the Bureau of Ghana Languages who translated the words of Kennedy Agyapong, Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin North, believed to contain inflammatory language, on Tuesday testified that there was nowhere on the tape where the MP called for Akans to kill Gas or Ewes.

He told the Accra Circuit Court where the MP is being tried for allegedly inciting tribal hatred that the words the MP used in the tape were "beat them", adding that the words he used also contained a lot of the word 'if'.


When asked by Nii Ayikoi Otoo, counsel for the accused person, whether or not he had counted the number of 'ifs' in the statement, he admitted he did not but knew there were quite a number.


He told the court presided over by Ebenezer Osei-Darko that he would not disagree with Mr. Otoo who said the word 'beat' could not be used to mean kill.


The witness tendered two similar translated versions of the MP's speech on Oman FM where he spoke based on which he is being accused of inciting one tribe against another.


The translator, in his evidence in chief said the tape was brought to him by a Criminal Investigations Department (CID) officer for translation.

The MP has pleaded not guilty to provocation to riot and offensive conduct.


The case has been adjourned to December 4, 2012.


Stephen Boafo, also known as Fiifi Boafo, the host of 'National Agenda' the morning show on Oman FM in Accra, was the first witness to testify in the case


Led in evidence-in chief by Rexford Wiredu, the principal state attorney, Mr. Boafo said he knew the accused person as an MP, adding that even though Agyapong was the owner of Kencity Media, which Oman FM was a subsidiary of, Mrs. Stella Agyapong was his boss not the MP.


He said he was a broadcaster and the host of Oman FM's morning show which usually discussed the newspaper headlines and politics. He added that the programme had a phone-in segment.

According to him, on April 13, 2012 in the course of the programme, he and his production team were told that the accused person wanted to make a contribution to the programme on the attack at Odododiodoo during the voter registration, and he allowed him to do so.


He said he later gave a statement to the police on the Odododiodoo attack which the state wanted to be tendered to the court in evidence but Nii Ayikoi Otoo objected on grounds that proper foundation had not been laid for the statement to be tendered.


The court upheld the objection so the witness continued his evidence, saying he did not remember every detail of what happened but said he remembered asking the MP whether he was declaring war due to what happened at Odododiodoo, to which the MP answered in the affirmative.


Boafo noted that he asked the MP again whether he was declaring war, to which he said he was and added that the war was starting from that moment.


The MP is on self-cognizance bail.