Court Orders Afoko, Agyepong Be Probed

The Goaso District Magistrate Court in the Brong-Ahafo Region has directed the police to investigate the National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Paul Afoko and the General Secretary, Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, for their alleged link with a convict over his (convict’s) criminal conduct.

Abubakar Wahab, now a convict who was sentenced by the court on Tuesday to a fine of GH¢4,000 or in default serve a two-year jail term with hard labour, told the court, presided over by Kwaku Twumasi, that he was asked by Messrs Afoko and Agyepong to conduct an opinion poll on the June 13 NPP parliamentary primaries in the Asunafo North Constituency to ascertain who the likely winner would be.

The convict, after his sentencing, caused a stir in the court by pleading with the judge to allow him to make a statement, in which he mentioned that he spoke to Mr Kwabena Agyepong on telephone while on remand telling him (Agyepong) the situation he (Wahab) had found himself in.

Based on that the trial judge ordered the police to investigate the fresh issues that came from the convict to establish whether Kwabena Agyepong really knew something about the convict’s presence in the constituency, and whether he (convict) actually spoke to Mr. Agyepong while on remand.

Abubakar Wahab, three weeks ago, was arrested by the police following a complaint by some constituency executives of the NPP that Wahab claimed he had been sent by an aspirant in the constituency parliamentary election, Evans Bobie, to kill the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Robert Sarfo-Mensah.

However, when he appeared in court after his remand, Abubakar told the court that he did not even know Mr. Bobie.

He claimed that it was rather Sarfo-Mensah who plotted with him to malign Mr. Bobie with those lies since the latter appeared more likely to win the primaries based on the results of his (Wahab’s) opinion poll.

The convict claimed that after completing his survey, he informed Mr. Agyepong about it who directed him to see the incumbent MP to make the results available to him.

According to the convict, when he met with the MP, he offered to pay him (Wahab) GH¢4,500 to concoct lies against Mr. Bobie in order to destroy his image to enable him (MP) to retain his seat.

The convict further alleged in court that the MP then gave him GH¢150 as part payment and added one bottle of Champagne to it and promised to pay the balance after the job was done, but was later arrested.