In a naked display of naked power reminiscent of the PNDC days, a District Chief Executive (DCE) Mr. George Frimpong, has rammed through the appointment of a man who contested the recent bye-election as a government appointee at the assembly.
The man, Mr. George Kyei Baffour contested the election at the Ahenebronum electoral area of Konongo at the Asante Akim electoral area in the Ashanti Region and lost by over 610 votes, but people petitioning against his membership of the assembly contend that he is a known National Democratic Congress (NDC) activist whose loyalty is in doubt.
This development has sparked off a huge sense of betrayal in the people of the community and they have fired off a strongly worded petition to Hon. Asamoah Boateng and followed it up with a letter to the Konongo District Commander of the police informing them of their intention to stage a demonstration in protest ‘against some untoward conduct of the District Chief Executive’.
The man, Mr. George Kyei Baffour had been an assemblyman going as far back as 1990 when he was a cadre in the ‘revolutionary’ era, and continued as an assemblyman on the back of the NDC, turned his back on the party, wormed his way into the corner of the current Minister of Finance his townsman, Hon Kwadwo Baah Wiredu, and emerged as the current President of the National Association of Local Governments, and wealthy government contractor.
In the opinion of the community leaders, there would have been no need for an election in which the government used taxpayers’ money to organise if Mr. Kyei Baffour was going to be returned as an assemblyman.
For him to stand, file, campaign and to be rejected completely by his own people in preference to the gentle Konongo boy, businessman, who has been showing unmatched commitment for the education of the local children by his numerous documented deeds, and words.
Surprisingly, Mr. Ken Opoku Asiedu has shown through his pre-election campaign messages that he is distressed about the disastrous standard of education of the youth in the area and putting his money where his mouth is.
In a rare display of selflessness worthy of emulation by all, he repeated again and again on local FM stations that he is not interested in the position of District Chief Executive, nor presiding member, nor even those who were by then fired by his infectious and overwhelming good nature, shot down suggestions that he should take on Hon. Baah Wiredu for the Parliamentary seat.
Representatives of the community who spoke to The Chronicle swore that they are convinced that the President is unaware of what is happening in the area.
In their petition signed by a good number of registered voters, they told Honourable Asamoah Boateng’ the Local Government Minister that ‘we don’t want to see Kyei Baffour in our assembly. He should not be made to come in through the back door, we will resist at all costs’.
They also mentioned that ‘we believe that there are certain skeletons in the cupboard of the ex-presiding member and this DCE would adopt all means possible to hide from the public.
‘During the just-ended assembly elections. Kyei Baffour in flagrant disregard of principle and law went for some exercise books bearing the inscription ‘Government property; Asante Akim North District Assembly, Donated by Ministry of local Government .. Not to be sold.’ He kept them in his house and distributed to people just to win support…We made a report to an FM station but when reporters went to investigate him he made his cronies and campaign team assault them.
One of those assailants was Mr. Oteng, his campaign manager. This case is still under investigations by the Police in Konongo.
The Chronicle has learnt that the swearing-in of the assembly men would come on Thursday and not today as earlier reported, and the petitioners who have reported the matter to the Office of the President and other relevant authorities have pledged to see the back of the longest serving assemblyman in Ghana.
