NDC Chairman Curses Daily Guide Reporter

THE ASHANTI Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Yaw Obimpeh virtually went �mad� on Monday as he threatened to physically assault a DAILY GUIDE reporter in Kumasi, I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr barking �I will beat you.� The NDC chieftain who was burning with anger, stunned onlookers including his own party members in front of the Asafo office of the party, as without provocation, he threatened to deal ruthlessly with the reporter for writing about him. For a moment, Obimpeh who is noted for his violent nature seemed to have been calmed down only to resurface later at a press conference to heap curses on the reporter, saying �even if I don�t get you, God will deal with you.� But for the timely intervention of the PRO for the Ashanti Regional Minister, Francis Dodovi, who stopped the blood-thirsty NDC chairman in his tracks, something nasty could have happened. The reporter had been invited by the party to cover a press conference. He was standing with his colleagues just in front of the NDC office having a chat, awaiting the start of the event. From nowhere, Obimpeh who was yelling on top of his voice, creating a scene in the process, appeared at the scene and suddenly pointed at the reporter, asking �is this the Joe of DAILY GUIDE?� With a furious demeanor, he then started marching towards him but Dodovi who was once an editor of a local FM station, suspecting the quick tempered Obimpeh would act violently, held his hands and begged him to stop. The NDC chairman who was once a cadre during the PNDC regime when freedom of speech was alien in the country, then vowed to beat up the reporter if he dared enter the party office where the press conference was about to take place. Dodovi, with difficulty managed to admonish the NDC chairman to listen to his good counsel as he dragged him from the scene to prevent him from spitting venom on the hapless reporter who did not utter a word. The infamous incident which has cast a big slur on the image of the chairman occurred at the NDC�s regional office at Asafo in Kumasi in the presence of NDC guru, Kwasi Ofori Agyeman aka �Zuba� and other journalists. The reporter ignored the NDC chairman�s threat on his life and attended the press conference which took place at the party�s office around 2:30pm. During the latter stage of the press conference, the agitated-looking NDC chieftain again grabbed the microphone and reiterated his threat on the reporter in a form of a curse. Obimpeh, with a grim face and panting said �I want to meet this DAILY GUIDE reporter face-to-face. I will deal him ruthlessly if I lay my hands on him.� He added �even I don�t get him; God will deal with him for peddling falsehood about me.� The NDC chairman then refuted the �Veep Bodyguard Points Gun At NDC Chairman� story published by the paper on Monday. Meanwhile, the paper has been reliably told by sources at the Osu Castle in Accra that the Vice president feels the story has injured his image so he has appealed to Mr. Obimpeh to flatly deny it publicly to save his image. Obimpeh, who is said to have been promised a ransom for effectively carrying out this mission, was heard speaking on several radio networks in the city where he took the reporter to the cleaners. Obimpeh was believed to be a staunch Rawlings boy in the PNDC days but he shocked the NDC founder when he suddenly switched camp to the Mills side prior to the party�s Sunyani congress last year. He is on record to have labeled Mr. Rawlings as a spent force who is no longer important and influential in modern day politics. Obimpeh made these sarcastic remarks in the heat of the campaign for the presidential slot which saw former first lady Nana Konadu battling President Mills. Obimpeh was the same person who in the heat of the campaign for the Sunyani congress, alleged that some notorious people who wanted to take away his life had shot at his car. Surprisingly, the said shooting incident which political pundits in Kumasi have labeled a hoax peddled by the NDC guru to gain popularity, happened in front of the Tech Police Station. The police have reached a dead end in their investigations into the allegation.