THE DISBURSEMENT of an amount of ¢60 million the President, Mr. J. A. Kufuor donated to victims of the December 3, 1997 disaster at Bekwai in Ashanti has sparked off controversy.
Out of the amount, ¢45 million is said to have been disbursed.
The Member of Parliament for Bekwai, Mr. Kofi Adusei Poku who is also the Deputy Minister of Local Government as well as Mr. Richard Aboagye, the DCE are said to have kept ¢15 million of the money to themselves for no apparent reason.
The Chronicle has gathered that on December 3, 1996 while members of the Young Elephants, a wing of the NPP then in opposition were in a procession to meet the then Presidential candidate, a tipper truck veered off its lane and ran over the enthusiastic "Young Elephants" killing 12 people, nine of which were members of the Young Elephants at Bekwai. Twenty other people sustained severe injuries as a result.
When the NPP won political power in 2000, Mr. Yaw Manu, a leading member of the Bekwai Young Elephants and one of the survivors petitioned the President through the then Regional Chairman, Mr. F. F. Antoh, to compensate the victims of the horrific accident.
It was in response to the petition that on November 18, 2004, whilst President Kufuor was on a campaign trip, he personally donated ¢60 million to the victims for disbursement by the MP and the DCE.
It is said that the money was meant for relatives of the deceased persons and survivors of the accident.
But Yaw Manu, complains that ¢45 million out of the lot was disbursed to families of none out of the 12 deceased persons with each family receiving ¢5 million.
A committee which membership included Mr. Kwabena Nyameduase, Assembly Member for Asokwa Tonsuom Electoral Area, Mr. Ntem, Polling Station Chairman, Madam Mercy Karikari, a leading NPP Member and the Constituency Finance Secretary, saw to the disbursement of the ¢45 million.
Since 2004, the remaining ¢15 million remains undisbursed contrary to the instructions of the President. Manu has accused MP Kofi Adusei Poku of victimizing him because the MP sees him as not in his camp and therefore would use his influence to stop the disbursement for his benefit.
Upon a complaint lodged with the MP's Catholic priest brother, Rev, Father Adusei at Bekwai to intervene, Manu was directed to the DCE who was said to be in possession of the ¢15 million. Manu said the DCE claimed that the Constituency Executives who handled the money had misappropriated the ¢15 million.
As a result, the DCE reportedly pleaded with Manu not to make any noise about it and promised to "settle" him (Manu) with ¢2 million from his (DCE) own resources.
Manu, however, turned down the offer because he was championing the interest of all 20 injured persons and therefore would not shut up.
He spilled the beans by calling for the institution of a probe into the activities and role of the MP and DCE in the disbursement of the ¢60 million as directed by the President.
Meanwhile, Mr. Richard Aboagye, the DCE says the ¢60 million has since been disbursed accordingly to 12 relatives of the deceased persons.
He told The Chronicle in a telephone interview that the money was meant for the dead and not survivors. The MP's cell phone rang several times but was not answered.
