THE BASE MOVEMENT IN TURMOIL

Leadership Accused Of Betrayal, Sell-Out To NPP Bigwigs

Internal audio leaks expose alleged plot by Oti Bonsu, Jacob Osei Yeboah to sabotage Kennedy Agyapong’s political vehicle for personal gain

TNR Files

Even before its formal registration as a political party, The Base Movement the grassroots organisation formed to champion the presidential ambitions of former NPP flagbearer aspirant Kennedy Ohene Agyapong is tearing itself apart amid explosive allegations that its leadership has been compromised by key figures in the New Patriotic Party.

Internal audio recordings and text messages intercepted by The New Republic have revealed a deepening crisis within the movement, with founder Oti Bonsu and Chief Operating Coordinator Jacob Osei Yeboah (JOY) facing accusations of exploiting the group for personal enrichment and secretly negotiating with the very establishment the movement was created to challenge.

THE GABBY CONNECTION

At the centre of the storm are allegations that Oti Bonsu held clandestine meetings with Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, the influential cousin of former President Nana Akufo-Addo and a powerful figure within the NPP’s inner circle.

According to leaked audio from an internal meeting, Oti Bonsu reportedly confessed that Otchere-Darko had reached out to him, offering to settle all expenses incurred during the formation of The Base. The meeting allegedly took place at the reception of an undisclosed hotel.

One furious member, whose identity has been concealed for their safety, confronted the founder directly in the recording:

“There was one meeting outside, there was light out and Mr. Oti Bonsu brought out his phone and confessed that Gabby Otchere-Darko has called him and messaged him that all the expenses he has made he is ready to settle them. So he said they met at the reception of a certain hotel.”

The member challenged Oti Bonsu’s credibility, accusing him of dishonesty and blackmail: “If you come back to tell us that you have not gone for any money and accuse Maame Becky then what are you trying to tell us? You always have something different to tell a few people and say something totally different when it is a crowd. Why are you doing that as an elderly person?”

KEN’S NAME, OTI’S GAME

In a revealing moment that underscores the identity crisis facing the movement, one member demanded clarity on whether The Base was truly about Agyapong or had become a vehicle for Oti Bonsu’s personal ambitions.

“I want to ask that in this group that we are in, I want to find out is it Oti Bonsu whose name that will appear on the ballot paper or Hon Ken Agyapong,” the furious member demanded.

The same individual questioned the strategic direction of the movement, pointing out that every activity prominently features Oti Bonsu’s image and name rather than that of the former Assin Central MP, who remains the movement’s magnet for grassroots support.

“He should let us know when we meet, if it is Ken Agyapong or Oti Bonsu,” the member insisted, warning that the movement’s following exists solely because of the former MP, not his businessman associate.

JOY UNDER FIRE

Meanwhile, Jacob Osei Yeboah, the former presidential candidate and recently appointed COC, finds himself in equally hot water. Sources within the movement have accused JOY of being “planted” by Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s camp to serve as their “eyes and ears” within The Base.

One insider, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed: “There is a deliberate clandestine sabotage of the growth and progress of The BASE Movement agenda by JOY that has created deep cracks in the leadership. Some national and regional committee chairmen are campaigning for his resignation as chairman of the National Executives Committee.”

The allegations against JOY are particularly damning, with members claiming he is being “financially induced” to undermine the movement from within. The suspicion is that the NPP aims to prevent The Base from evolving into a fully-fledged political party that could split the party’s grassroots base.

THE BAWUMIA FACTOR

Adding to the intrigue is the alleged involvement of the Vice President’s team in negotiations with The Base leadership. Highly placed sources claim that Dr. Bawumia’s camp has already met with top leadership to discuss “reconciliation” and financial settlements.

Allegedly, these discussions have included negotiations around monetary payments to Oti Bonsu for his demolished East Legon property currently subject to court action as well as reimbursement for costs incurred by Agyapong during his NPP presidential primary campaigns in 2023 and 2024.

This development has reportedly thrown the normally combative Agyapong off balance. The former MP, known for his no-nonsense approach to politics, has remained conspicuously silent on the unfolding drama, leading to speculation about his true intentions.

KEN’S DILEMMA

Insiders suggest that Agyapong’s silence may be strategic. One source explained: “His prolonged silence about his plans for the BASE movement is due to the fact that Ken is still eyeing the presidential flagbearership of the NPP, hence closely monitoring events in the party for a return to his umbilical cord if conditions are favourable for him.”

This puts Agyapong in a delicate position publicly supporting The Base while simultaneously keeping his options open within the NPP establishment that he has so vocally criticised.

IRONY OF JOY’S OWN WORDS

The allegations against JOY come barely a month after he issued a fiery public statement warning against the very actions he now stands accused of.

Addressing the media on July 29, the former independent candidate declared: “The Base belongs to Kennedy Agyapong and the youth of Ghana. Anyone is free to join and work with us, but it must be for the interest of Kennedy Agyapong and the transformation of Ghana. Whoever uses The Base Movement to advance selfish interest should know that God will judge and punish such actions.”

The irony of these words has not been lost on aggrieved members, who now accuse JOY of being the very embodiment of the selfish ambitions he warned against.

MOVEMENT ON THE BRINK

The internal strife has created a dangerous schism within The Base, with some members already preparing to break away and form a splinter group.

“Ken supporters are definitely not happy about the turn of events in The Base Movement hence considering a breakaway within the breakaway movement. The situation is murky and the future is pregnant,” one insider revealed.

Meanwhile, there is growing suspicion that the NPP is actively pumping money into the movement to recruit members and promising them “juicy political positions” in a calculated attempt to derail The Base’s momentum.

OTI BONSU’S PAST HAUNTS HIM

Oti Bonsu’s relationship with the NPP establishment has been fraught since his multi-million dollar storey building at East Legon was demolished last year by in-laws of Dr Bawumia an incident that resulted in a court case and deepened his alienation from the party.

His decision to recruit JOY into The Base has now been characterised by angry members as a calculated move to “blackmail the NPP for monetary gains and betray Ken Agyapong.”

THE ROAD AHEAD

As the crisis deepens, the question on everyone’s lips is whether The Base can survive the current turmoil. With leadership credibility in tatters and accusations of betrayal flying in all directions, the movement that was meant to be a grassroots revolution against establishment politics now finds itself mirroring the very intrigues it was created to oppose.

The New Republic has learned that a confrontation is looming, with aggrieved members threatening to publicly confront Oti Bonsu at the next general meeting particularly over his treatment of one Maame Becky, whom one member described as “far older than you, Oti Bonsu.”

“if you continue to attack her unjustifiably we shall deal with you. We are telling you. If you don’t know and the day we meet you attack her and his son who is my brother, I will deal with you all,” the furious member warned.

For now, the man at the centre of it all Ken Agyapong remains silent, his next move uncertain, as the political vehicle built in his name threatens to collapse under the weight of internal sabotage and establishment infiltration before it has even left the garage.