Advertisement

Mr Rafael Apaaya
Mr Rafael Apaaya

TEWU General Secretary found dead in hotel room after TUC congress

Less than 48 hours after attending the 10th quadrennial delegates congress of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Kumasi, the General Secretary of the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU), an affiliate of TUC, has passed on.

The body of Mr Rafael Apaaya was found in his hotel room in the early hours of Saturday after several attempts by his colleagues to reach him had proved futile.

Mr Apaaya, together with the National Chairman of TEWU, Mr Peter Lumor, and other executive members of the union had stayed back after the TUC congress last Thursday to settle the hotel bills and other matters.

The team had planned to leave Kumasi for Accra that Saturday morning.

Confirmation

Confirming the death to the Daily Graphic, Mr Lumor said when members of the team were ready, they could not find Mr Apaaya.

“I, together with other colleagues, called him on his phone, and although the call went through, there was no response,” he said.

He said the members, in their desire to reach their colleague, reported the situation to the management of the hotel and the wire net of the window was cut to enable them to peep through the room, only to see their colleague lying on the edge of his bed. 

According to him, a call was placed to the Asokwa Police, who advised that the door be broken into, as Mr Apaaya could be needing help, but when the door was forced open, they saw a lifeless body.

Mr Lumor said the deceased’s family had been informed and were on their way to Kumasi.

Police

The Ashanti Regional Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mr Yussif Tanko, who corroborated the story, said Mr Apaaya’s body had since been deposited at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Hospital mortuary awaiting autopsy.

He said the police were investigating the death, although they did not suspect any foul play.

The deceased, who was then the Deputy General Secretary of TEWU, became the General Secretary following the death of his predecessor, Mr Mohammed Bogobiri, in 2013.

Connect With Us : 0242202447 | 0551484843 | 0266361755 | 059 199 7513 |