The family of Prof John Evans Atta Mills has threatened to expose the skeletons in Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom’s closet by letting Ghanaians in on the history behind the businessman-turned-politician’s name change from Joseph Yorke to the local name he currently goes by if he and his party do not stop digging into the cause of the late president’s death.
The threat issued by Prof Mills’ brother, Samuel Atta Mills, follows a demand by Dr Nduom’s Progressive People’s Party (PPP) that the Mahama administration and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) must publish the late president’s autopsy report to prove they had no hand in his death.
On July 24, 2012, Prof Mills became the first Ghanaian leader to die in office, but with the exact cause of death withheld from the public, speculations have been rife that there may have been foul play in the former law professor’s passing which occurred only six months to the 2012 polls. Prof Mills’ health had deteriorated by then and he had been considered too weak to endure the physical demands of campaigning.
At the PPP’s first national rally at the Kawukudi Park in Accra, the party’s General Secretary, Murtala Mohammed, dared the NDC to release the autopsy report to prove their innocence.
“If you didn’t kill Mills and if you are not happy Mills died, produce the autopsy report. We are challenging John Mahama to produce the autopsy report of [late] President Mills. The Central Region people here, I want you to listen to me: if John Mahama comes to your region, tell him to produce the autopsy report,” he urged.
Mr Mohammed’s comments came within the same week that PPP founder and flag bearer Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, at a rally in Cape Coast, had said some NDC officials put on a public show of sorrow with Prof Mills’ demise but privately rejoiced over his passing, saying it had paved the way for their electoral triumph in 2012.
He told the crowd at a rally held on Thursday September 15: “Mills was our kinsman and he became the president. Some people criticised and attacked him until he died. And some of the NDC people themselves thanked God that Mills died. Is that not strange? And after his death they came back here to tell us to replace him with another person from the Central Region.”
“After all that, they go about provoking us that if Mills had not died, the NDC wouldn’t be in government today. … It appears as though they deliberately pushed him to the seat so they can commit the wrongs behind him.”
However, Prof Mills’ family has berated Dr Nduom and his PPP over their comments in connection with the late president’s death and warned Dr Nduom to put a stop to his “crusade” or risk getting exposed.
“You see, when you call yourself a Dr., it is assumed that you have a little bit of common sense and some intelligence, but for this man [Dr Nduom] to be going the way that he is going, I am just puzzled and marveled. What he should understand – from what my brother said – was: ‘dzi wu fie asem’ – mind your own business.
“Now what Paa Kwesi Nduom [needs to do] – and I’m sorry to call him Paa Kwesi Nduom – is he needs to explain to Ghanaians why he changed his name from Joseph Yorke to Paa Kwesi Nduom. Look, the fact that we are peaceful doesn’t mean that you can take us for a ride. Paa Kwesi Nduom, this is a warning to him, he needs to shut up about always asking questions about who killed Prof. Now if he keeps on saying that then it means he has some information. If he keeps on doing that his clan will have to come and explain to our clan what happened. My advice to Paa Kwesi Kwesi Nduom is this: ‘If you don’t want a dog to lick you in the face, you don’t play with it’. I don’t know why Paa Kwesi Nduom is making it his crusade. If he doesn’t shut up about that, I will make it my project [to expose him]…,” Mr Atta Mills said.
“I’m also reiterating what many people are saying: he needs to tell Ghana why he changed his name from Joseph Yorke to Paa Kwesi Nduom. Look, I Know this guy, he grew up in Elmina. Let him know we know a lot about him and that he needs to be quiet. This is a political season that is why he is doing this. Put a ballot box in Paa Kwesi Nduom’s company and he will lose. Why won’t he allow this man to rest in peace? Why?
“It’s all because of politics, that’s why this guy is behaving this way. Now if this is how politics is, you see, Plato said it best that one of the consequences of not getting involved in politics is that you end up being ruled by the inferior of the society and if that is what it has come to then Paa Kwesi should be warned. Now this should be his last time, if he keeps on asking questions about what happened, we would make sure that his clan will come and explain to our clan what killed our brother.
“Paa Kwesi Nduom, his father was a good friend of my father’s. His father is dead, the same way my father is dead. Why doesn’t he publish his father’s autopsy? Why doesn’t he do that? Yes my brother was a public figure, what do you want us to say? No matter what you say, it’s going to be a different story. The man is dead, let him rest in peace. Paa Kwesi Nduom shouldn’t be the one peddling this. Paa Kwesi Nduom has a lot more [skeletons in his] closet. Like I said: ‘If you don’t want a dog to lick you in the face, you don’t play with it’” he warned.
Asked by Naa Dedei Tettey on 12Live on Class91.3FM if the family will succumb to pressure and publish the autopsy report, Mr Mills, who is also the NDC’s parliamentary candidate for the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem Constituency in the Central Region, said: “It is nobody’s business.”
“The guy has passed on, whatever we put out, people are going to challenge us, why don’t we let him lie in peace, let’s move on. We know what killed him; we have the autopsy report, what is the big deal? How come Paa Kwesi Nduom didn’t raise it four years ago when he passed away and he waits in an election time? Is this how we run our elections? Well he calls himself a Doctor so he needs to at least exhibit that he has a little bit of common sense and some intelligence. He needs to live above this fray. If someone else is saying it [fine]; I don’t expect it out of this man. He needs to be quiet, he needs to run his campaign.”
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