Former President and Flagbearer elect of the National Democratic Congress, John Dramani Mahama has stormed the Accra high court to support Chairman of his party, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo in his case involving a leaked tape allegedly containing his voice.
Deputy National Communications Officer, Mr. Kweku Boahen is also expected to appear before the Justice Asiedu’s Commercial High Court.
Accompanied by other party officials including General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia, Inusah Fusieni, Joyce Bawa and others, the team joined the Chairman for his first hearing in the case involving the said audio.
Mr. Ofosu Ampofo represented by Counsels, Tony Lithur, Dominic Ayine and Edudzi Tamakloe, will answer to charges arising out of the contents of the leaked tape.
The charges preferred against them are Conspiracy to cause Harm and assault against a Public Officer.
Meanwhile, both the National Chairman and Deputy National Communications Officer have flatly denied the charges.
Background
A leaked audio purported to be the voice of Mr Ofosu-Ampofo in a meeting with NDC communicators had him saying: “We’re going to take her [Chairperson of the Electoral Commission] to the cleaners.”
“As for the EC Chair, we must wage a relentless war on this EC Chair. Me, she doesn’t want to see my face,” Mr Ofosu-Ampofo is alleged to have said.
In the audio, he also gave his blessing to the party communicators to insult the Most Rev. Professor Emmanuel Asante, the Chairman of the National Peace Council.
“For the first time, I’ll endorse insulting the National Peace Council Chair,” he said.
The alleged meeting between Mr Ofosu-Ampofo and NDC communicators was aimed at planning strategies ahead of the 2020 general election.
When the issue of the leaked tape went viral, the NDC described it as concocted and false.
A statement signed by Mr Gyamfi and released by the party dismissed the authenticity of the said tape and accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and some members of the government of being the masterminds behind the tape.
The NDC, therefore, urged the public to disregard the said audio, which had gone viral, and “treat all of its content with the contempt it deserves”.
Subsequently Mr. Ampofo after reporting to the CID for investigations was formally arrested and was charged accordingly with a threat of harm, conspiracy to harm a public officer and proceeded to write his statement.
After that, he was granted bail in the sum of Gh¢400,000 with two sureties.
John Dramani Mahama, Ofosu Ampofo and Johnson Asiedu Nketia