In the latest twist to the unfolding political drama in the Effia Kwesimintsim Constituency in the Western Region, the Member of Parliament of the area and Minister for Trade, Industry, PSI and PSD, Hon. Joe Baidoe-Ansah has dragged the publisher to the party hierarchy.

This development is independent of his reported arrest over the weekend by Kwesimintsim District Police over the same matter, following a report by Mohammed Ganiyu, the constituency Youth Organizer of the party.

In a letter dated 28th February, 2008, and copied to the executives, the MP alerted the party of the implications of what he called “the misuse of the party’s symbol and name for personal gains.

“This is to bring to your attention, the attached fundraising letter authored by Kofi Coomson, publisher of Ghanaian Chronicle, which is a breach of our political party’s constitution and rules. I am by this letter also officially reporting to you the illegal use of our party’s symbol and name for personal gains,” he wrote.

The minister, who said he expected the party to act on the matter, further linked Coomson’s interest in the parliamentary seat to frequent attacks on his person.

“Let me also state that this reflects the real motives for the series of articles written in the Chronicle newspaper, which he owns, meant to damage my reputation and jeopardize my future election,” he stressed.

While the Kwesimintsim police say they are still investigating the criminality or otherwise of the matter, political observers are closely monitoring what steps the party would take.

It would be recalled that Coomson, who is yet to file nominations to contest any of the NPP parliamentary seats in the country, had put in circulation a letter to certain individuals soliciting for funds.

The aspiring MP admitted that he spent a fortune on the project in the past two years, and had become financially handicapped; prompting him to request for assistance to print T-shirts and posters, and buy megaphones for members of his team.

Even more alarming in Coomson’s letter is his solemn pledge to be at the beck and call of his sponsors when given the nod.

“You will also have a friend in the legislative house you can summon to give you an ear on any issue for consideration by the house,” he assured.

The distress letter said: “I have been working on the project for over two years now at a huge cost, nursing the constituency, and I am now challenged financially and have to count on people like you-a small circle of high net-worth friends who have some faith in me to come through with my aspirations”.

The publisher, who claimed that a greater proportion of the work had already been done, said he still needed the $70,000 to finish it up. The contentious letterhead, which bore the pictures of Kofi Coomson and his wife, Diane, noted in the body that cheques should be made in the publisher’s name.

Political funding by individuals had been largely criticized by media gurus in the country, many of whom argue that it is dangerous to the country’s infant democracy.

Also vehemently criticized by the private media is the cash spending that characterized the recent NPP presidential primaries.

Coomson’s ‘brouhaha’, DAILY GUIDE gathered, generated a great deal of rumpus at the NPP headquarters a few days ago. While some party big wigs lambasted him for jumping the gun, others said using the party’s name and symbol before filing is not new.

Even though it is not clear how much he has allegedly spent on politics in the last two years, Kofi Coomson’s letter suggested that he had already spent more than twice the sum he was soliciting.

The $70,000 was just for T-shirts, posters, megaphones and a few other items.

Whatever it is, the battle line has been drawn and the race for the Effia Kwesimintsim seat seems to have just begun.