Jubilee House Angry at Ken Agyapong; Why?
Sometime this week, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu referred a radio presenter to ask the Hon Ken Agypaong, whether it’s true that the Chief of Staff gave him (Ken Agypaong) money to be deposited into the bank account of Hon. Adwoa Safo, the Dome Kwabenya MP. The tone of Kyei Mensah Bonsu’s comment showed clearly, a cut frustrated individual.
Yes, indeed, the Majority Leader was not happy about the question. Not that the questioner was being mischievous. Far from that. He thought it was the highest level of irresponsibility on the part of Hon Agyapong to have gone public to state that he deposited some 120,000 (not known whether Dollars, Pounds or Ghana Cedis) into the Fidelity Bank accounts of Adwoa Safo on the instructions of the Chief of Staff, Frema Akosua Opare.
Again, it’s not that Ken’s story was untrue; but as the party in administration, certain decisions and commentaries on sensitive issues ought to be dealt with, respectively, under wraps or with great care. But trust Ken Agyapong to once again exhibit his faulty forte of acting contrary to acceptable public norms.
He often does that to show his strength in his party and for that matter, the ruling administration. And to also score pointless political points as perhaps, the only person that speaks to, where others dread. This time, however, he has backfired hugely; and he is sitting on tenterhooks with the seat of government—the Jubilee House. The presidency is said to be angry at Kennedy Agyapong’s misdemeanour in the Adwoa Safo issue.
Readers will remember the NPP Communication Director of the NPP, Yaw Buaben Asamoah was first to go public against Ken Agyapong on the issue, insisting it was a political faux-pas on the part of the Assin North MP to go public on Adwoa Safo’s absence from Parliament in a manner that easily gives out party and government secrets so easily.
As usual, Ken Agyapong would not spare Yaw Boabeng Asamoah his blushes for daring to criticise him on the Adwoa Safo issue. He went to the extent of referring to the former Adenta MP, as a failed lawyer. Ken Agyepong told the national broadcaster, the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation in an interview that the Chief of Staff gave him 120,000 (Cedis, Dollars or Pounds?) he couldn’t state the denomination though, to be given to Adwoa Safo ostensibly, for the lady MP to consider coming to Parliament to help the majority’s pursuit of approving the controversial E-Levy.
The Chief of Staff considered that Hon Agyapong would be a vital agent in the relay of the said amount to Adwoa Safo because of Ken’s relationship with the Dome-Kwabenya MP. Ken Agyapong has two children with Adwoa. But the fact of the matter, as discovered by this author, is that Adwoa never got the slightest inkling that the disputed amount was given to her by the Chief of Staff through Ken Agyapong.
Ken made it seem like he was the one giving the amount to Adwoa for the upkeep of his kids. Adwoa gleefully gave her Fidelity account number to Ken Agyapong in the belief that her children’s father was depositing into her account, the upkeep fees of his (Ken’s) children. It was after the fall-out of Ken’s television interview that Adwoa got to know the real motive behind Ken’s gesture.
A miffed Adwoa did not take the issue kindly at all and therefore confronted both Ken Agyapong and the Chief of Staff Frema Opare. My search shows that Mrs Opare had been too embarrassed by Ken’s behaviour and therefore pleaded with Adwoa for forgiveness. Since his obvious faux-pas, Ken Agyapong had been the subject of intense attack by most NPP members, especially those in key government and party positions.
His problems are compounded by his suggestion in the same interview that all of NPP’s party executives should be dismissed from office. As the heat on him mounted, he swallowed his pride and pleaded for forgiveness. He indeed apologized for passing that unsavoury comment on his executives. What many are asking is whether Ken’s hold on the NPP can still stand after such a massive miscalculation.