Hannah Sarpong, a young activist from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Akyeremade Ward of Ejisu constituency in the Ashanti region, has accused the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako , popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, of coercing her into defecting to the NPP.
On Thursday, August 29, 2024, Ms. Sarpong claimed that she was pressured into defecting while on her way to campaign for the NDC. Contrary to earlier media reports, she also denied holding the position of Women’s Organizer for the Akyeremade Ward of the NDC.
According to reports, Ms. Sarpong was tasked by the NDC’s National Organizer, Joseph Yamin, to mobilize women for an upcoming party event. However, after a meeting with Chairman Wontumi, who was campaigning in Ejisu, she decided to defect to the NPP. Chairman Wontumi claimed that after discussing the NPP’s policies for the youth, particularly the Free SHS program from which Ms. Sarpong had benefited, she voluntarily chose to abandon her assignment for the NDC and join the NPP.
A video that has since gone viral shows Ms. Sarpong removing her NDC-branded attire and replacing it with NPP paraphernalia at the NPP’s Ejisu Constituency office, symbolizing her shift in loyalty.
Shortly after the incident, Ms. Sarpong returned to the NDC office and accused Chairman Wontumi of forcing her to defect.
She revealed that after being given an NPP T-shirt and other paraphernalia, she was handed two hundred Ghana Cedis (Ghc.200) by the Chairman.
She claimed she used the money to settle a personal debt and then set the NPP items on fire at the NDC’s Ejisu constituency office in protest.
Responding to Ms. Sarpong’s claims, Andy Thomas Owusu, a representative of the NPP, denied that she was coerced into defecting. “The lady voluntarily decided to join the NPP after our engagement, as evidenced by the video of her rebranding herself with NPP paraphernalia. No one forced her to defect,” he explained.
The incident has sparked controversy, with both parties providing conflicting accounts of what transpired.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
