Akufo-Addo Vs. Otumfuo & the Asantes

Sometimes I wonder what is happening in the Ashanti Kingdom today. The Ashantis who pride themselves as the staunchest pillar behind the Otumfuo, the Asantehene, seem to have deserted the current occupant to the Golden Stool, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

Never in the history of the Asante Kingdom have they sat aloof whilst one man continues to poke his hands into the eyes of the occupant of the Golden Stool without reacting. And it is no other person than a man who goes by the name, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Ghana’s legendary serial presidential sore loser, who continues to defy and disrespect Otumfuo Osei Tutu, Asantehene.http://ghanapoliticsonline.com

It is an open fact that whilst the Asantes respect, cherish, adore and love Otumfuo Osei Tutu, the only prominent Ghanaian who has shown disdain to Otumfuo and continues to walk over him without any reaction from the Asantes is no other person than Akufo-Addo, the 2008, 2012 and 2016 presidential candidate of the NPP.

Going back to memory lane, Ghanaians recall that Akufo-Addo in the run-up to the 2012 Elections got his hirelings to spread false rumour about Otumfuo that he is in the deep pockets of the ruling NDC. The situation got so bad that it forced Otumfuo to issue a denial. Otumfuo stressed that his goal is to support any ruling government so that the Ashanti Region would get a fair share of the national cake through developmental projects.

But a month before the 2012 Elections, Otumfuo Osei Tutu, and the National Peace Council instigated a meeting with all the eight (8) presidential candidates behind closed doors at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Even though the agenda was not made public it later came out that the meeting which attracted supporters of political parties was aimed at maintaining peace before, during and after the December 7, 2012 polls. In attendance at the meeting were not only the top guns of the various political parties but former Presidents Rawlings, JA Kufuor and the Chief Justice Theodora Wood.

The historic meeting went well and all the presidential candidates pledged to abide by the results of the 2012 Election. Before the attendees of the peace meeting scattered a unity rally was held to demonstrate to Ghanaians and the world at large that Ghana’s democracy had come of age. But Otumfuo Osei Tutu made one passionate request before the unity rally, which was totally agreed by all the presidential candidates.

Otumfuo appealed to the candidates to give more meaning to the unity rally by not wearing party colours to the rally grounds. But unbeknown to Otumfuo and the rest of the prominent personalities, one of the candidates called Akufo-Addo had other plans. Whilst all the seven (7) other presidential candidates came to the rally not dressed in party colours, only Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo showed up at the rally in NPP colours. Akufo-Addo poked his hands into the eyes of Otumfuo Osei Tutu in no other place than Kumasi by snubbing him and wearing NPP colours to the rally grounds.

The biggest shock came when Akufo-Addo eventually lost the 2012 Presidential Election. And instead of going by the Peace Pact signed by all the other presidential candidates to support the eventual winner, Akufo-Addo again rubbed the nose of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II in the mud by going to the Supreme Court to invalidate the votes of over 4 million Ghanaians and “crown” him the winner.

The Supreme Court later threw out the bogus case Akufo-Addo and his lying comrade-in-chief, Mahamadu Bawumia brought against the Electoral Commission. But again, Akufo-Addo, “who had never done anything wrong” and always pins all his shortfalls on others, sent out his hirelings to accuse the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu for bribing the Supreme Court judges who sat on the case to skew the case in favour of the NDC.

Akufo-Addo and his Akyem Mafioso even went far by falsely claiming that Otumfuo Osei Tutu paid GHC 5,000,000.00 to each of the judges that sat on the case. And the insults that Akufo-Addo and his people poured on Otumfuo was unimaginable, and Otumfuo became helpless as his Ashanti subjects who were supposed to defend him rather kept quiet as Akufo-Addo and his men daily insulted him.

Akufo-Addo has never hidden his disdain and disrespect for the Asantehene. Last year Akufo-Addo embarked on a “Rise and Build” tour which the NDC redubbed, “Rice and Beans” tour. He started the tour from the Volta Region and the tour took him to all the 10 regions. Akufo-Addo in his zeal to win the 2016 election at all cost visited all the important chiefs in nine regions. But when Akufo-Addo landed in the Ashanti Region, he openly snubbed Otumfuo Osei Tutu, the custodian of the Golden Stool in the region that had always given the NPP the highest number of votes in Presidential Elections.

Akufo-Addo at the behest of his immature hirelings openly ignored Otumfuo and went about their business in the Ashanti Region, and later bolted to Accra to cool off at his Nima residence.

Not too long ago the suspended Chairman of the NPP, Mr Paul Afoko released a bombshell that when the NPP internal wrangling became so intense and bad, Otumfuo Osei Tutu offered to mediate between the factions, but Akufo-Addo told Otumfuo to “go to hell”.

Akufo-Addo did the same thing to former President Kufuor by walking away from a mediation meeting attended by some prominent clergy like Emmanuel Martey, Mensa Otabil, Palmer-Buckle, and Asante Antwi. When the going got tough and Akufo-Addo was told in the face by Rev Emmanuel Martey, the Presby Moderator, that he was the person behind all the troubles in the NPP, Akufo-Addo walked out of the meeting held at Kufuor’s residence.

Last month we all saw what happened during the burial ceremony of the late MP, JB Danquah at the funeral grounds at Tafo. There was some form of a scuffle when the representatives of the Asantehene led by the Asamponhene, Oheneba Kwadwo Afodour, refused to stand up when the Okyehene arrived at the funeral grounds. But for the timely intervention of the security men at the grounds, it would have been bloody.

Barely about two weeks ago, Otumfuo Osei Tutu held the Akwasidae to climax activities marking his 17th years to the throne. Akufo-Addo and other dignitaries were invited. But it was only Akufo-Addo, who failed to show in Kumasi, with a flimsy excuse that, he had other business to attend to.

For how long will Asantes sit down while Akufo-Addo, who is not yet a president continue to rub the nose of Otumfuo in the mud? I do not care what people will brand me because I speak the truth.

Look at the way Akufo-Addo walks over ex-president Kufuor and the other kingpins from the Ashanti Region. And if coming events always cast their shadows, then Ashantis should be forewarned if Akufo-Addo wins the presidency.

Akufo-Addo is not president yet, but treats all the leading Ashanti men and women in the NPP with contempt. Imagine if he wins the November election, what would become of Otumfuo and the Ashanti kingpins.

And if Akufo-Addo does not respect Otumfuo, let alone Kufuor and other NPP top guns who toiled to build the NPP, what will become of the ordinary Ashanti man or woman whose vote he is seeking to mount the highest office of the land. You guess!

magjackson80@yahoo.com
http://majjacks80.blogspot.com