Intelligence gathered by THIS DAY reveals that the then President J.A Kufuor
knew that Ya Na Yakubu Andani II was going to be murdered days before the king
met his bloody tragic end at his Gbewa Palace on 29th March, 2002.
According to information gathered, a few days before the Ya Na’s palace came
under attack, the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Mr.
Owusu-Fordjour sought audience with the President after feedback from security
reports he sent to him was not forth coming.
During his meeting with the President, Mr. Owusu- Fordjour expressed disquiet
about the fact that the President had not granted his request for more uniformed
security personnel and resources for Dagbon despite the reports that he had sent
to him concerning the volatile security situation there.
The President is said to have denied knowledge of any security report from the
BNI boss. The BNI boss thus took the opportunity to brief the President about
the security situation in Dagbon and impressed on him the need to beef up
security there quickly to avoid any conflagration.
President J A Kufuor, therefore, at this stage, knew of the threat on the life
of Ya Na Yakubu Andani II.
Intelligence gathered reveals that after receiving a brief on the security
situation, President Kufuor convened a meeting involving his National Security
Advisor, Lt. Gen. (rtd) Joshua Hamidu, Major (rtd) Suleimana who was a member of
the National Security Council and Mr Owusu Fordjour.
Tempers were said to have flared up at the meeting with hot exchanges between
Hamidu and Suleimana on one side and Owusu-Fordjor on the other.
After the meeting, President Kufuor, though now fully aware of the threat to the
Ya Na’s life in Dagbon, took no steps to protect him. As a result, soon after
the Ya Na was murdered, a highly upset Owusu-Fordjour convened a meeting at the
foyer of the BNI headquarters and announced his resignation to them saying he
does not want innocent blood on his hand.
Many have opined that if President Kufuor had been responsible enough to beef up
security at Yendi based on the briefing he had received from the BNI boss, the
Ya Na and twenty-five others who were slaughtered in cold blood would have been
alive today.
Ironically, security was beefed up in Yendi only after the Ya Na and his elders
had been killed.
