News
Farmer jailed 10 yrs for illegal possession of ammunition
Forty-three-years-old David Blagodzi, farmer, has been convicted by the Jasikan Circuit Court to 10 years imprisonment in hard labour for possessing ammunition without authority.
Blagodzi, who appeared before the court, presided over by Mr Michael Johnson Abbey, pleaded guilty to the charge and was convicted on his own plea.
The court further ordered that the ammunition be sold, and the proceeds deposited into the Consolidated Fund.
Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Seth Vicent Kpodo told the court that the complainant was the Nkwanta Divisional Police Command while the convict was a farmer resident at Chillinga near Nkwanta in the Oti Region.
He said on July 17, at about 1330 hours while the police were on their usual duty point at the Nkwanta barrier on the Nkwanta-Brewaniase Highway, they intercepted a red VW Golf with registration number GE 6527-12 from Brewaniase direction towards Nkwanta with the convict on board.
ASP Kpodo said a search was conducted on the vehicle and police found two cartons containing 250 AAA cartridges and 250 OO cartridges in the convict’s bag placed in front of him in the front seat.
He said the convict was arrested and was escorted together with the exhibit to the police station for investigation, during which the convict admitted the offence in his cautioned statement.
ASP Kpodo said the convict revealed that he intended to sell the cartridges at Chillinga.
Member of Parliament for Kpandai constituency, Matthew Nyindam, has argued that he would have defeated the National Democratic Congress candidate if a rerun election had been held, insisting that his loss was a battle against the power of the state rather than a fair contest.
Nyindam explained that his legal challenge to the 2024 parliamentary election was based on irregularities in four polling stations.
He noted that his team expected the court to address those specific concerns, not to order a fresh election across the entire constituency.
According to him, the decision to rerun the election confirmed what he described as a long standing pattern of unfair conduct by the NDC in Kpandai.
He added that he anticipated the chance to appeal the ruling but was surprised when Parliament later declared his seat vacant.
Nyindam stressed that the declaration of the seat left him feeling unfairly treated.
He maintained that he won the election clearly and believed the process that followed was aimed at removing him from Parliament prematurely.
He further stated that the situation turned into a contest between himself and the state.
He explained that running against the full weight of government made the election difficult, as ministers, MPs, chief executives and other officials were actively involved in campaigning, with resources flowing into the constituency.
Despite these challenges, Nyindam expressed confidence in his political strength, stating that under normal circumstances he would have beaten his opponent comfortably.
He added that he ultimately left the outcome in the hands of God, believing that destiny would determine whether he returned to Parliament.
Nyindam concluded that although the experience was painful, he believes it will serve a greater purpose in his political journey.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, known as Chairman Wontumi, has admitted that the party did not achieve its desired results in the Ashanti Region during the 2024 general election but maintained that the region remained the party’s strongest support base.
Addressing the media after a post election review, Wontumi said the party quickly set up a regional committee to investigate the reasons for the loss and to propose solutions.
He explained that a subcommittee was tasked to study what went wrong and recommend ways to improve future performance.
According to him, the committee’s report highlighted both the party’s mistakes and areas that need improvement.
He noted that the party has taken lessons from the findings and is ready to make changes.
Wontumi stressed that he learns quickly and is committed to applying the recommendations.
He emphasized that despite not meeting expectations, votes from the Ashanti Region significantly contributed to the party’s overall national performance.
He explained that the region pushed the party to the final figures it recorded in the 2024 election and still produced more votes than any other region.
Wontumi added that a post mortem of the results would show that the Ashanti Region performed better than others, even though the party fell short of its target.
He described the region’s effort as commendable.
He said the party now understands what voters in the Ashanti Region expect and assured them that the NPP will engage them better and work to meet their needs in future elections.
By: Jacob Aggrey
