Ashanti NDC Chairman narrowly escapes assassination

Kumasi, July 1, GNA - The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) narrowly escaped an assassination on Thursday night, when unknown gunmen fired at his vehicle, while returning home after attending a party meeting.

Mr Yaw Owusu Obimpeh was unhurt.

The incident occurred not far from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Police Station on the Kumasi-Accra Highway at about 2100 hours.

The Regional Police Commander, Mr Patrick Timbillah, had led a team of crack investigators to the crime scene.

Mr Obimpeh, who was alone in the vehicle, told the Ghana News Agency that it was a miracle that he was unscathed.

He said he slowed down the vehicle when got closer to a speed ramp and all of a sudden there was this sound of boom."

"I nearly lost control of the steering wheel but I managed to pull myself together and drove to the KNUST police station."

He said he could not tell whether he was being trailed or his would-be assassins had waylaid him.

The bullets believed to have been shot from a pump-action gun opened a gaping hole in the rear glass of the vehicle and caused cracks to the windshield.

A sizeable crowd of supporters of the NDC who gathered at the police station could not hide their anger and blamed the incident on the on-going internal power struggle in the party.

It comes barely a month after Mr Obimpeh had reported of threats on his life by an unidentified group through cellular phone text messages.