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The family of the late Finance Minister and Economic Planning, Hon. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, has reacted angrily to claims by a self-acclaimed widow of the late minister that the family was broke and could not take care of the education of the children left behind by the former finance minister. The family has described the report as palpable lies being perpetrated by the so-called widow, as a means of using their late brother as a sympathetic tool to siphon funds from friends and loved ones. They have, therefore, cautioned the public to disregard such claims by anyone masquerading as the widow of the late minister, stating emphatically that the said woman, whose identity has now been discovered as Akua Fremah and not Margaret Akua Baah-Wiredu, is not the legally wedded wife of the late minister and cannot, therefore, hold herself as such. The younger brother and successor to the late minister, Kwasi Agyemang Wiredu, has emphatically stated that the family does not recognize Akua Fremah as a wife or partner of the late minister, though his brother had intimate affair with her, resulting in the birth of two children, namely Afia Frah and Kofi Baah-Wiredu. The outrageous claim by Akua Fremah has also compelled the legally wedded wife of the late minister to come public from her base in the United States, lamenting that her identity has been stolen by Akua Fremah, since as far as she is concerned, �there is only one Mrs. Baah-Wiredu and that is what will continue to be�. Mrs. Margaret Baah-Wiredu is accusing her rival of using her identity as a bargaining chip to claim monies from friends and loved ones and in the process, denigrating the integrity of her husband posthumously. These sentiments are similarly shared by the successor of the late minister who called at the Regional Office of The Chronicle, to complain about a publication made late last week and the extent of damage it had done to the reputation of the humble family. Mr. Agyemang says the 100 year old mother of the late minister has since the publication not been able to sleep, because she feels so embarrassed that her son, who led a decent life whilst on earth, was being denigrated in such a despicable manner, seven years after his passage. But Fremah has told The Chronicle it is rather the family members who are bringing shame and disgrace upon the late minister, because they have failed to grant her what is rightfully hers. THE DENIAL Mr. Agyemang Wiredu stated categorically during an interview with The Chronicle that Akua Fremah is not a wedded wife of his brother and cannot, therefore, parade herself as such. According to him, his late brother had only one wife who is now domiciled in the United States of America (USA). �As you are aware, in our Ashanti tradition, you cannot claim the right of a wife if a man has not paid your dowry to your family or the necessary traditional customs have not been done. �It is true that my brother had an affair with Akua Fremah which resulted in two children but that was just it, they never lived as husband and wife.� He contended that in spite of the fact that the relationship between Fremah and his late brother was not a legitimate one, the family has never shirked its responsibility of taking care of the two children as custom demands, including giving a fair share of all estates of the late minister as enshrined in the PNDCL Law 111. MP�s EX-GRATIA AND SSNIT BENEFITS Mr. Agyemang Wiredu stated that a few weeks after the demise and subsequent funeral rites of the late minister, the family met in Accra, in the presence of some former ministers under then President Kufuor�s NPP administration, to discuss issues relating to the distribution of the estates of the late minister. According to him, several deliberations were held with former President Kufuor, personal lawyer of the late minister and also lawyers for the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), as part of efforts to equitably share the belongings of the late minister. He explained that because his late brother died intestate (without a will), the name of Akua Fremah and her two children were not present in any document of the late minister, but because they wanted fairness to prevail and ensure a better future for the two children whom they recognized legitimately as part of the Baah-Wiredu family, they made sure the names of the two children were added to every document to enable them benefit from the late minister�s estates. He continued that Akua Fremah and her two children were offered GH�18,000 as their share of the late minister�s Parliamentary Ex-Gratia and additional GH�90,000 as their share of SSNIT Pension Benefit. �These monies were paid in the presence of one Lawyer Adu Atuah, Lawyer for SSNIT in Accra, located on the Kojo Thompson Road and the Registrar�s General Department is also aware. You can call them and find out,� an emotionally charged Agyemang Wiredu noted. According to him, Fremah declined a request by lawyers of the late minister to invest the money in Treasury Bills, and instead insisted that the money be given to her to invest in business. He said aside this, there were other benefits that Fremah received by virtue of the fact that she had children with my late brother and mentioned one Mr. Apenteng of Yutong Bus Services, who was said to have donated one bus to Fremah, to use on Operate and Pay Basis. �Apart from all these, we are aware that former President Kufuor, after the funeral, ordered donations and presents from loved ones to be shared amongst the four children, with the two kids of Fremah taking the chunk because of their tender ages. �I am also aware that the MP, Hon. Anyimadu, offered the children scholarships, so why is she saying that there is no money to take care of the children�s education,� Mr. Agyemang questioned. He said at a Memorial Lecture organized by the NPP last year, some bigwigs of the party, such as Dr. Charles Wereko Brobbey and Hon. Kan Dapaah gave Akua Fremah huge sums of monies after lying to them that she was broke and could not take care of her children. �I think that enough is enough! This Fremah is bent on destroying the reputation of our late brother and the Baah-Wiredu family, we are not going to allow that!,� he warned. Mr. Agyemang further said he had on countless occasions been taking care of the school fees of the two children, stressing that other relatives had made similar gestures as a sign of respect for the late brother. �Fremah currently occupies the house built by our brother and she uses a car bought for her by our brother.� AKUA FREMAH SPEAKS But Akua Fremah, the woman at the centre of controversy, has mounted a strong defence of her position and is daring the family members of the late minister to appear before the powerful river deity, Antoa Nyamaa, for honesty test. Fremah says everything the family members are saying about her is not true and has, therefore, threatened to go to Antoa to prove her innocence of all the accusations. �I am a Catholic but I will put that aside and fight my innocence at Antoa; I want them to come out and challenge me at the shrine and let�s see who is telling the truth,� Fremah dared. According to her, she was no longer ready to stomach the harsh treatment being meted out to her by the family and will fight tooth and nail to establish her innocence and also prove to the world how wicked family members of her late husband are. She said though she was fully aware that her husband left her property and funds, she had been denied all that on the premise that she was not a legitimate wife. She says since the death of her husband, the family members have never taken the trouble to sit with her and deliberate on the welfare of the children, denying emphatically the assertion by Mr. Kwasi Agyemang Wiredu that she has been given her due share. �The family members have barred me from going to the house; they did not even allow me to pack my things from my room, I survive on the magnanimity of friends because they have seized everything property and money that I am supposed to have as mother of his two children,� Fremah lamented. Fremah said all the monies they claimed they have given her, never came to her and that several efforts to get them have proved futile. She said though she was aware that President Kufuor and other prominent personalities in the country contributed huge monies towards the funeral of her husband, some of them directing specifically that the money be given to her (Fremah), Mr. Agyemang and the family members refused to do so, leaving her and the two kids seriously impoverished. Fremah stated that if she was to narrate her ordeal in full, the world will know the kind of people the family members are, �but I won�t do so because of the secrets I shared with the late minister and what he told me before his death.� If they say I am the one bringing shame to the family, I find it difficult to understand, but I know my God lives and one day the truth will come out. For now, there are lots of things I don�t want to say, if they like they should let us go to Antoa,� she bewailed. REAL WIFE POPS UP Meanwhile, the legally wedded wife of the late Finance Minister has spoken from her base in the United State and has similarly warned the public not to patronize her �rival�. Speaking in an interview with a Kumasi-based radio station, KESSBEN FM, Mrs. Margaret Baah-Wiredu, stated unequivocally: �There is only one Mrs. Baah-Wiredu and that is me, there is no one else. I am amazed that someone is going round trying to destroy the hard won reputation of my dear husband.� Sobbing uncontrollably, Mrs. Baah-Wiredu said she had since the publication on Thursday been receiving calls from friends and loved ones all over the country, asking her whether she had granted interviews to radio stations about her living condition. �Let me state categorically that my late husband was a very responsible man who lived a decent life; no one should try to destroy his reputation and that of the family,� pleaded Mrs. Baah-Wiredu, who also corroborated the story of Mr. Kwasi Agyemang Wiredu.