Paa Kwesi Nduom's Hired Voters Arrested

TWO youngmen Lawrence Ogla, known to be a resident of Elmina and Stephen Ackom a citizen of Kissi, near Elmina both believed to be the leaders of a group of young people organised from Accra to come and register and take their pictures towards the December elections were on Friday arrested here.

Narrating the story to the "Ghana Palaver" at the Police Headquarters here, the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Constituency Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Mr Awuah Gyamfi said sometime during the registration exercise, he had an ananymous call from Accra that a group of young people were being transported into the KEEA Constituency to register.

On hearing this, the secretary said he mobilised his members but before they could close in on the group, they had managed to register and were gone.

"Then on Friday, I had another call together with vehicle numbers that the same group was coming again to take pictures," he said adding that "we divided ourselves into four groups and laid ambush.

"Luckily the group that was led by the party's parliamentary candidate, Madam Victoria Asuman Nelson, intercepted a bus at Aburansa where the leader Stephen Ackom-Mensah, a worker of Tai Sei Construction firm in Accra said the Minister of Energy, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom recruited them.

He said their number was 129 and were given ?10,000.00 for food on the road.

Mr Kwesi Thompson, the Propaganda Secretary of the party at KEEA noted that during the interception and confrontation one of the people known simply as 'doctor' (now at large) hit Madam Nelson on the head with an umbrella while another Yaw Onyabiaoye insulted her that you are an "ashawo" woman (meaning you are a prostitute).

Mr Thompson said the two intercepted buses managed to take off and were chased to the Moree barrier where the drivers were asked to turn and drive to the Regional Police Headquarters but they refused.

Upon their refusal, he related, the Inspector at the barrier radioed for re-enforecement and when it arrived, the leader showed interest only in the assault case without paying the slightest attention to the political one.

Meanwhile, the people have been asked to report to the Regional Police Commander on Friday.