On April 12, 2025, former Odododiodio Constituency MP, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye, revisited his harrowing arrest during the Nana Akufo-Addo administration. His experience came to light amid discussions on the recent attempted arrest of Assin South MP Rev. John Ntim Fordjour.
Vanderpuye shared on Channel One TV that, during his time as a sitting MP, he was handcuffed and locked in a vehicle’s boot, an incident he described as more traumatic than what Rev. Ntim Fordjour faced. Vanderpuye’s arrest occurred on December 7, 2020, during a violent election day that left one of his polling agents dead and many party officials detained. He collapsed during the ordeal and lost seven hours of his life, while those responsible for the violence remained free.
In a recent episode, NIB operatives attempted to arrest Rev. Ntim Fordjour after his explosive allegations of drug trafficking and money laundering against government-linked flights at Kotoka International Airport. Fordjour’s claims, announced at a press conference on April 1, 2025, involved an air ambulance and a private jet. Ghana’s President, John Dramani Mahama, has called for full cooperation with Fordjour to investigate these allegations.
The attempted arrest was thwarted when key figures from the New Patriotic Party, including Minority Leader Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, intervened. Vanderpuye criticized the dramatization of the situation and emphasized that MPs are not immune from arrest when not in Parliament. He noted agreements within parliamentary leadership for presenting members to authorities during such legal challenges.
The fallout from Fordjour’s claims highlights Ghana’s stringent drug trafficking stance. President Mahama reinforced the country’s zero-tolerance policy, urging security agencies to pursue the investigation diligently. The unfolding political tension and its ramifications on Ghana’s legal and political landscape remain under close scrutiny.
Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com
