They last time we met he teased me to be careful – Close friend late Ernest Yaw Kumi reveals last words

It has come to light that the late Member of Parliament for Akwatia, Ernest Yaw Kumi, complained of chest pains shortly before his sudden passing on Monday, July 7, 2025.

This heartbreaking detail was shared by his close friend and former Denkyembour District Chief Executive, Seth Birikorang, during an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen.

According to Mr. Birikorang, he and Mr. Kumi had travelled together to Takoradi on Friday, July 4, for an event organised by Effia MP, Isaac Yaw Boamah Nyarko. The two returned to Accra on Sunday evening.

“After we got back to Accra on Sunday, around 6:30 pm, he dropped me off at Mallam Junction, and I took a taxi home,” he recalled.

He added that their final conversation was full of laughter and casual jokes. “He even teased me to be careful and to pray no one takes a photo of me in a taxi and posts it online just six months after we lost power. We laughed, and before parting ways, he reminded me we had a meeting at 2 pm the next day and told me to call him if I didn’t hear from him.”

But what seemed like a normal evening soon turned into tragedy. Mr. Birikorang said he was shocked when, around 9:00 am on Monday, he received a phone call from Mr. Kumi’s wife, informing him that the MP had suddenly fallen ill and had been rushed to Lister Hospital.

“I was told he had been rushed to the hospital around 2:00 am. The doctors tried their best to stabilise him while waiting for a specialist to arrive,” he recounted.

He described the scene at the hospital as emotionally overwhelming. “When I got there, I met his wife, his mother, and the doctor at the emergency ward—but everyone went silent when they saw me.”

Struggling to hold back tears, Mr. Birikorang said, “I was confused. Nobody said a word until the doctor asked his wife if he could speak to me. When she agreed, he told me that Yaw was no longer responding to treatment. I suggested trying another drug, but that’s when they broke the news—he was gone.”

He also explained that at some point between 9:00 and 10:00 am that morning, Mr. Kumi had told his wife that he wanted to rest. She stepped away, only to later receive word that he had passed.

“How can a good man die in this painful manner? Someone should tell me this is not true,” Mr. Birikorang cried on air.

Mr. Kumi’s untimely death has shocked both Parliament and the nation at large. Colleagues from across the political divide have paid tribute to him, describing him as a calm, intelligent, and rising figure in Ghanaian politics.