The recent fake kidnapping story in the Western Region has reignited conversations about the hoax kidnappings of 2000.
As discussions about the kidnapping plot by the 28-year-old Takoradi woman continue, veteran journalist, Abdul Malik Kweku, Baako has chronicled what he contends to be a plot by the government then to place blame on the New Patriotic Party then.
Ahead of the General Elections of 2000, stories of abduction became dominant in the media space with dozens of persons particularly women reportedly missing.
“Who remembers this story which broke in late October 2000? Who remembers how it became a "political hot potato" in the countdown to Election 2000? And how top shots of the ruling party of the day, sought to incriminate the opposition for electoral advantage until "The Crusading GUIDE" and other independent newspapers exposed the lies embedded in the claim of abduction peddled by functionaries of the ruling party?
“Subsequently, the controversy was laid to rest when The Crusading Guide intercepted and published the attached Bureau Of National Investigation(BNI)'s Memorandum addressed to the Minister of National Security and the National Security Co-ordinator, dated 15th November 2000.
“Please take note of the last paragraph of the confidential memorandum. Therein lies the rationale and motivation for the crude politics and propaganda which accompanied that bizarre story of abduction and kidnapping of a son of a member of the Government of the day,” he shared with photos of what claims to be a National Security report.
“Kweku Baako promised his followers more such document from the past which highlights how political actors resort to extreme means to score points.
“Thank God, I still have this memorandum in my library. Stay tuned for the publication of more such rare documentation and records from "19kojohoho" to date!” he added.
Background of Josephine Mensah’s alleged kidnapping
Josephine was reported to the police as missing on the September 16, with later reports indicating that some alleged kidnappers got in touch with her family to demand a ransom for her return.
She was found by a carpenter in Axim on Tuesday, September 21, 2021 and was said to be unable to speak from trauma.
She is reported to have requested for a pen and a paper through which she communicated her ordeal to the people who found her.
According a carpenter who found her, a traumatized Josephine informed him through writing that she went into forced labour when the kidnappers grabbed her. He further stated that the baby died and was taken away from her.
Her family and security officers were later contacted and she was sent to a health facility at Axim for medical attention.
Following her revelations, Josephine Mensah has been detained at the Takoradi Regional Police Station where she is assisting in investigations.
Her prosecution begins on Monday, September 27, 2021.
Veteran journalist Kweku Baako