Sir John takes On Kofi Wayo Over Cocaine

The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie (pictured)has cautioned Ghanaians not to place serious premium on statements and accusations made by maverick politician Charles Kofi Wayo, especially when the discussion is about alleged use of drug money to fund political party campaigns. In the opinion of the NPP General Secretary, popularly known as Sir John, Mr. Wayo�s main contribution to political discourse is to provide comic relief. Mr Owusu Afriyie was speaking to Citi FM in response to claims by the leader of the United Renaissance Party (URP) that the majority of people suspected to be dealing in drugs are either known or are members of the opposition NPP. Mr Wayo, who left the NPP to form his own party but now serves on the Board of the Tema Oil Refinery under the NDC administration, told Citi News that unlike the NPP, President John Evans Atta Mills and the NDC abhor drug trafficking. He said the Mills administration has shown more commitment towards fighting the menace than the erstwhile Kufuor administration. Mr. Wayo�s comments come in the wake of threats by the Executive Secretary of the Narcotics Control Board to name politicians involved in the use of drug money for political campaigns, ahead of the 2012 elections. Pressure has mounted on Mr. Akrasi Sarpong to name the so-called �cocaine politicians� since he had the guts to caution them publicly. Among others, the National Chairman of the NPP, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Assin North MP Kennedy Ohene Agyepong and NPP founding father Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakooe, have all publicly dared the NACOB boss to name the culprits or remain silent. Mr Sarpong has however ignored the calls, insisting further investigations would have to be conducted. Nevertheless, in the absence of Mr Sarpong�s list, maverick politician Kofi Wayo claims majority of the �cocaine politicians� are within the NPP. �A lot of these cocaine guys are in NPP, yes. I know the big men in NPP all knew about (jailed former NPP MP) Eric Amoateng. Now it comes out that Yaw Anfo-Kwakye, Akufo-Addo�s Chief of Staff (sic) was arrested before for drugs. So why does he still keep him? These are the questions that show we have no morals and ethics. And we suffer for it. Go to London or Paris and see how they search you because you are from Ghana. "You people don�t seem to know the implications of this drug thing. Now it is easing up a little bit because Atta Mills is showing muscles likewise the NACOB Boss Akrasi and his men. Atta Mills doesn�t show tolerance for drugs and he subjected himself to a drug search. The issues keeping up in NPP don�t they?� he asked listeners of Citi FM. In response, �Sir John� declared: �Let me state straightaway that our party do not harbour criminals, nor cocaine peddlers or cocaine barons, we don�t. If there is anybody out there who knows anybody to be involved in that, the laws of this country are there to deal with such people. It will be irresponsible for people like Kofi Wayo to be talking the way they do. �In Ghana, when people want to take people serious, Kofi Wayo is one of such people that no one takes serious. He is often what we call comic relief, and that is what he is. So we are not going to waste our time responding to people like Kofi Wayo when they accuse the NPP of peddling drugs. "If he thinks that there is any evidence and he is a good citizen of this country, he must take it to the police, and stop with respect, the nonsense that he continues to peddle from one radio station to the other�.