Deputy Minister disturbs Tuobodom peace

The relative peace which the people of Tuobodom in the Brong-Ahafo Region are enjoying – after the violence that left eight persons dead and some houses burnt – was nearly disturbed when the Deputy Minister of Education, Alex Kyeremeh, went to file his parliamentary nomination forms to contest in the National Democratic Congress primaries.

But for the swift intervention of the military and the police patrol teams who have been stationed at Tuobodom since the trouble started, the situation would have been nasty.

At about 4.00 pm on Thursday, September 10, 2015 – which was the closing date for the submission of completed nomination forms – one Prince Opoku Mensah, a 35-year-old business administrator who picked forms last week to contest the Techiman North parliamentary primaries, also went to the party’s office at Tuobodom to file his nomination papers. He was followed by a large crowd amidst singing, drumming and dancing. After presenting his forms, Mr. Opoku Mensah, who is very popular in the constituency and an apparent threat to the deputy minister, decided to address the crowd.

In the course of the address, Mr Kyeremeh also arrived with his followers and upon seeing the crowd which had followed Mr. Opoku Mensah, he thought they were there to support him (Kyeremeh) and so he came out of his car to jubilate with them, but that was a very serious miscalculation. Upon seeing Mr. Kyeremeh, the crowd started booing and jeering at his followers.

There was a near confrontation, impelling the security agents to set in immediately to ensure peace and order.

In a related development, Nana Kofi Nimo, a staunch NDC supporter who was denied nomination forms through an alleged mechanization of the deputy minister, has threatened to stand as an independent candidate, come 2016.