There are many secret societies in Ghana and the world at large. These groups, mostly called the brotherhood hold meetings in private and nothing or little information about the group is known to the general public.
This is because their information is deemed confidential to members of the society.
One of the most talked-about secret society groups in Ghana is the Freemason.
Most prominent people in the country including former president John Agyekum Kufuor, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Ghanaian historian, Henry Martey Newman, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Ekumfi, Effutu MP, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, are members of Freemason.
Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin has disclosed how he was initiated into the brotherhood; Freemason - years after his identity with this group took many Ghanaians by surprise.
He noted that a former national chairman of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), the late Harona Esseku was the one who led him to join the freemason.
The Effutu MP added that Harona Esseku ensured that he rose through the ranks to hold a good position in the brotherhood.
Disclosing this in a tribute to the late Harona Esseku on Saturday, October 1, 2022, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin said, "He [Esseku] taught me the fine details of being a politician with an enviable code. He also showed me the doors to masonry and led my young hands into its hallowed chambers."
"Indeed, he laboured day and night to teach me that all squares and perpendiculars are perfect points to know a brother. He did not end there. He ensured that I immersed myself in the brotherhood and rose quickly through the ranks, on merit, to take a seat in the "East," he added.
Harona Esseku died on August 3, 2022, at age 88.
About Harona Esseku:
The late Harona Esseku's political career started in 1968 when he was elected by the Awutu's, Effutu's, Gomoa's and Agona's to represent them in the constituent assembly during the drafting of the constitution of the second republic.
Harona Esseku became a founding member of the Progress Party in 1969 and served as Minister for Transport and Communications in the government of Prime Minister Kofi Abrefa Busia as the youngest Cabinet Minister at the age of 35.
He was also a member of the Second Republican Parliament as representative for the Awutu-Effutu-Senya Constituency.
At the onset of the third republic, he became a founding member of the Popular Front Party (PFP) and later a member of the steering committee of the party.
Mr Esseku was also, a founding member of the New Patriotic Party following Ghana's return to democratic rule in 1992.
He later served as National Chairman of the Party from 2001 to 2005.
Mr. Esseku's long years of distinguished service to his country, earned him the Order of the Star of Ghana in 2007, the highest national award conferred by the Government of Ghana in acknowledgement of the unsurpassed contributions of an individual to the country.
Afenyo Markin as a Freemason member:
In April 2016, the Member of Parliament for Effutu in the Central region, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, revealed that he is a member of the fraternal society, Freemasons.
According to him, the teachings and values of the organisation do not conflict with his catholic principles and upbringing.
Speaking to Bola Ray on Starr Chat, the outspoken legislator said Freemasonry teaches its followers about God and the principles of life.
Freemasonry consists of fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local fraternities of stonemasons, which from the end of the fourteenth century regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities and clients. The basic, local organisational unit of Freemasonry is the Lodge.
ESA/WA
Effutu Member of Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin (R) and the late Harona Esseku