The Ashanti Regional Minister, Kofi Opoku Manu, has described his near death experience in the hands of National Democratic Congress NDC foot soldiers in Sekyere East District of the Ashanti Region as ill-fated. Supporters and opponents of Mr Kwadwo Addai, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Sekyere East District of Ashanti, Wednesday morning clashed at the district capital, Effiduase. Opponents of the DCE from his own party, the ruling NDC had accused the DCE of sidelining them in the execution of development projects in the area and to calm tensions and find an amicable solution to the impasse, the Ashanti Regional Minister, Kofi Opoku Manu went to the district to try and intervene in the matter but was met with the violent attack. It took warning shots from the police personnel to disperse the rioters and bring the situation under control. Heavily armed police had to whisk both the DCE and the Regional Minister out of the area. Speaking in an interview on Adom Dwaso Nsem with Adakabre Frimpong Manso on Thursday, the Regional Minister said his entourage was overtaken by events as they did not know the people had laid ambush for them. This is so because he had thought that by going there personally to dialogue with the aggrieved party members they would calm down. According to the Regional Minister he was in the Sekyere East District for an outreach programme to check on the state of government projects and decided to ‘steal time’ to find a way of resolving the impasse between the DCE and party members. He said there was a scheduled meeting at a venue where the party normally holds its meetings but upon getting there in the company of the District Chief Executive, they were ambushed by the aggrieved party members whose action disrupted the planned reconciliation. Meanwhile the Police Divisional Commander for Afiduase, DSP Amevor, on Dwaso Nsem, confirmed the incident and said the police had prior information about the intention of the aggrieved supporters and such had provided police escort for both the Regional Minister and the DCE to the meeting venue. According to the Divisional Commander, the incident arose because of the change in venue for the meeting. Story by Adom FM/Ghana