There are strong indications that the Police Administration would probe the circumstances that led to the death of the then sitting President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, in July 2012.
The topic became a taboo when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration led by the then President, John Dramani Mahama, on whose ticket the tax law professor was in office, ignored calls to probe the untimely death of the first President in Ghana to have died in office.
The probe is being triggered as a result of a complaint filed by Prof. Mills’s successor, Mr. Mahama, against New Patriotic Party (NPP) Bono Regional Chairman, Kwame Baffoe, aka Abronye DC.
Mr. Mahama has caused his lawyers to write to the police CID to interrogate Abronye DC for saying that he and some NDC hirelings are planning to assassinate some NPP bigwigs, including Abronye DC himself.
In the complaints filed by his attorney, Lithur Brew and Company, the former President also accused Abronye DC of saying on television that he (Mahama) killed Prof. Mills, whose unfortunate passing occurred on July 24, 2012.
Strangely, Mr. Mahama has asked the police to investigate Abronye DC over the assassination of the NPP bigwigs but told the same police that they should disregard the allegation that he killed Prof. Mills because according to him, it was coming from an ‘unhinged mind’ in the person of Abronye DC.
Picking Signals
However, DAILY GUIDE is picking signals that the police would look at all the complaints filed by the ex-President, including the allegation concerning Prof. Mills’s death.
Abronye DC has insisted that the ex-President cannot pick and choose what the police should investigate and has said he would also push for the investigators to probe all the things he supposedly said, including the death of Prof. Mills.
Abronye DC has confirmed receipt of a police invitation dated March 19 at the instance of the ex-President.
The police invitation asked Abronye to report to the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the CID Headquarters in Accra, and it concerned an alleged case of publications of false news reported against Abronye DC by ex-President Mahama.
The CID, in the letter signed by Barima Tweneboah Sasraku II, Deputy Director-General of CID, urged cooperation from Abronye DC.
Unhinged Mind
In Mr. Mahama’s letter of May 4 to the CID Director-General, he had said that the allegation concerning Prof. Mills’s death was ‘irreverent’ and described Abronye DC, whom he had accused of peddling it, as ‘unhinged mind.’
“Regarding the rather irreverent and despicable allegation that he (Mahama) killed the late President John Evans Atta Mills, he (Mahama) would not dignify it with any answer, except to say that the allegation could only come from an unhinged mind,” the letter signed by his lawyer Tony Lithur of Lithur Brew and Company said.
Formal Complaint
According to the letter, the ex-President is lodging a criminal complaint against Abronye DC for ‘Publication of false news– Section 208 of Act 29.”
“I have been instructed on behalf of His Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, the former President of Ghana and the current flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), to formally lodge on his behalf, criminal complaints against a certain Kwame Baffoe alias ‘Abronye DC’, a Ghanaian citizen and a prominent member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). I understand he is the Chairman for the Bono Region branch of the NPP.”
The letter said, “My instructions are that in a recording of a TV programme on Net2 TV, Madina, Accra, which has been circulating on various social media platforms, including Facebook and WhatsApp, Abronye DC made certain false claims, alleging a plot masterminded by the NDC and His Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, to assassinate some NPP personalities including he, Abronye DC himself.”
The letter further said that “on the same programme, Abronye DC announced to the general public that some NPP personalities would be assassinated by the NDC hirelings, who would be wearing NPP T-shirts and that these hirelings would be doing the bidding of former President John Mahama.”
Mr. Mahama’s lawyer said further that “on the same programme, Abronye DC stated that President John Mahama ‘killed President John Evans Atta Mills’,” and enclosed as part of the complaint, a copy of the video recording of the said programme.
False Allegation
“His Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, has firmly instructed me to say that the allegations are, of course, false and for the avoidance of doubt would like to state that neither the NDC nor he has planned to hire, hired or cause to be hired, or instructed any person or persons to murder or assassinate anybody.”
In the letter, Mr. Mahama complained that “this is not the first time the same person, Abronye DC, has used similar platforms to denigrate and make scurrilous, outrageous and scandalous allegations against the NDC and former President Mahama and many other personalities within the NDC, which is the largest opposition party in Ghana,” adding “to date nobody has called the said Abronye DC to order.”
Disturbing Peace
“Abronye DC is a prominent member of the ruling NPP and while his false, outrageous and inflammatory accusations are clearly politically motivated; they are also likely to expose my client and members of the NDC to attacks from Abronye DCs political party sympathizers,” Mr. Mahama’s lawyer said in the letter.
“By reason also of his profile, he has by his false allegations pitted the two largest political parties in the country against each other in the context of spurious allegations of violent crime. This has real potential of disturbing the public peace,” he added.
“My final instructions are, therefore, to kindly request you to use your good office to cause investigations to be conducted into the Abronye DC’s false allegations and their publication,” the lawyer requested and drew the attention of the CID to Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29).