NPP AND THE GH₵ 7 MILLION ECOBANK ACCOUNT SAGA

The good old Holy Bible says money is the roots of all evil. In a fight to selfishly take clinical hold of money and possess power within organizations or societies have been very destructive and left body counts all over. Money brings great fortunes and powerful friends. It makes even a worse person becomes holy and talked-about. 

 

This fight for money and the desire to take control of an establishment is what is currently plaguing the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). 

The fight to control the financial kitty and call shots within NPP is what has caused the internecine conflict in NPP since its Tamale Congress that saw Mr Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyapong clinching the position of Chairman and General-Secretary respectively. 

GH₵ 7 MILLION VANISHED INTO THIN AIR?

Currently, it is said that over GH₵ 7 million cash which belongs to the NPP is nowhere to be found. However, investigations has found out that the money, which was proceeds from nominations and filing fees of the recently held NPP`s 2015 parliamentary primaries, is lodged at Ecobank, with only the party`s Treasurer, Abankwa Yeboah and the First Vice Chairman, Freddy Blay as the only signatories.

An unimpeachable source at the financial committee of the NPP, maintains that these two party officers, who thump-chest as unalloyed Nana Akufo-Addo loyalists have unilaterally operated the Ecobank accounts on the blind side of the party. 

Abankwa Yeboah, who hates the guts of the resilient duo, Afoko and Agyapong, refused to deposit the GH₵ 7  million cash into the recognised party account and has always blushed aside any queries to the where-about of the party`s money. 

At the last NEC meeting, both Abankwaa and Blay refused to attend to answer questions on the money and how it is being utilized for party operations. Details of the accounts, how much has been withdrawn and the purposes of the withdrawals shall be brought to the attention of the party very soon.

HOW IT STARTED

It is a public knowledge that Afoko and Agyapong run a vigorous campaign on their own merit against massive opposition and attacks from the die-hard supporters of party`s flag-bearer, Nana Addo.

The two were tagged as seriously anti-Nana with a grand agenda to ensure that Nana never attains the political Holy Grail in Ghana. This propaganda was brewed from diabolical elements from Nana`s camp to create enmity and serious loss at the Tamale Congress. But unfortunately, for the heavyweight party detractors and their supporters/underlings, the duo convincingly thrashed their opponents to sit in the positions they occupied today. 

One of the major reasons the two won their positions was their campaign message to the delegates to ensure proper administration of the party cash to avoid external manipulations, diversions and misapplications.

This is because the party`s financial administration during the tenure of the last executives came under monstrous accusations of impropriety, high-jacking and starving of the headquarters funds for its day-to-day activities.

This situation was caused by the creation of the party`s campaign team which was headquartered at Danquah Institute (DI). Every party activities and money went into the DI campaign office where selected members of the Campaign Team apply and distributed funds for electioneering and campaign activities.

NPP`s, Asylum Down party headquarters became a white elephant, as party executives gallivants between DI and Asylum down to eke money out of the Campaign team for the headquarters. 

This dichotomy of DI and Asylum Down, supported by Jake Okanta Obetsebi-Lamptey led Executives caused serious disquietude and general aversion for Jake and his team. Many party supporters saw it as serious weakness on Jake and his team for allowing DI to boss around the legitimate party headquarters and its personnel around like zombies. 

It was against this background that made Afoko and Agyapong very popular prior to the Tamale Congress. The popular feeling was that, the headquarters must take its proper role in the campaign, as the nerve center and not an appendage to the creation of the flag-bearer`s private campaign office. 

Afoko and Agyapong, on the quiet campaigned on the twin-theme of back to headquarters campaign team (centralized campaign from Headquarters) and clinical and effective administration of the party`s funds. This message caught up with many delegates, including many pro-Nana Addo loyalists and successfully quelled the morbid propaganda against the duo. 

The message made an avalanche of Nana loyalist/delegates casted their votes for Afoko and Agyapong, because they wanted headquarters (the elected party executives) to run their Campaign and not private party entity, DI.  They also saw Afoko and Agyapong as strong characters that can stand against certain personalities around Nana Addo who would not allow the 2012 DI campaign to transmogrify at all, compared to Jake and his team members like reactionary paper-tiger and master of misguided statements, Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie aka Sir John as well as some new entrants they cannot trust. They gladly voted overwhelmingly for the duo.

THE REASON FOR OPENING FRESH ECOBANK ACCOUNT

For the grandmasters and opportunists around Nana Addo who have successfully assisted him to lose two national elections, the entry of Agyapong and Afoko was a massive blow. Their major fear was how the duo had sounded the siren that they will ensure centralization of campaign with the headquarters as the base and strict application of party funds. That decision, if they allow Afoko and Agyapong to implement would spell doom for their very powerful roles, influence, loyalty and existence in the party. 

For without Nima/DI private campaign office of the flag-bearer where will their influence and visibility in NPP be? So the need to fight against Afoko and Agyapong to maintain the status quo or incur their wrath started immediately after they were declared winners at Tamale.

Sir John, after blissfully losing his position to Kwabena Agyapong quickly warmed his way into the hearts of the pro-Nana Addo inner circle to be part of the grand agenda to make Afoko and Agyapong and anybody in the executives that support and their tenure, very miserable and problematic. 

Series of impatient and bad decisions like sacking of headquarters securities, relieve of the positions of Reverend Opare-Hammond and Perry Okudzeto as well as poor human relations side of the duo, gave smoking guns to their internal opponents to start their inglorious campaign of image assassination, destruction and ultimately impeachment or votes of no confidence. 

When Chairman Mahama Adams of Upper East was murdered in an acid attack and an attempt to effectively utilize it to remove Agyapong and Afoko lost its vigor, a grand design was couched to exclude the duo from any financial transaction of the party. This is to ensure that the duo are made useless in their position as loyalists will continue to call the shots for the party, even if they are crooks, buffoons or damn incompetent.

To achieve their aims, the pro-Nana loyalists advised Abankwaa Yeboah to open the new Ecobank account, without informing either Afoko, Agyapong or Sammy Crabbe. 

This money in this account is being used for party activities unknown to the Chairman and his General Secretary and some members of the NEC. This is an affront to NPP`s own constitution.

It is a shame that the very people who claim to be Nana`s loyalists and gallivant around accusing Agyapong and Afoko of not being team players and doing things without involving all the party folks, are now engaged in such a serious clandestine divisive posture and taking unilateral decisions without the some members of the NEC. 

So clearly, NPP doesn’t have any friction, the friction are created by selfish individuals using uninformed youths and party folks and their own media houses to constantly attack the duo to make them become a pariah in NPP. 

The reason is simple: money, power and assured future positions in Nana`s government or when the party loses, ensure their re-elections. For now this loyalists have won, but in politics, no condition is permanent.

Time will expose some of these so-called loyalists using the flag-bearer`s name and personal proximity to execute their own agenda. Some have started disgracing themselves already as money taken out for certain activities never reached the beneficiaries. It has been swept under the carpet, but like pregnancy it will surely come out for all to see!