Accra, Ghana, February 4, 2020//-The Chief Convener of Caucus for Democratic Governance, Ghana (CDG-GH), Dr E.K Hayford has chastised the Communications Director of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Yaw Buabeng Asamoah for attempting to paint former President John Dramani Mahama black in the Airbus bribery claims.
According to Dr Hayford, “Yaw Buabeng Asamoah in his desperation to win the pending NPP primaries, called a press conference at the NPP party headquarters to speak out trash” against the former President of Ghana.
Mr Asamoah who is also the MP for Adenta is seeking re-election at the party’s upcoming parliamentary primaries. But Dr Hayford said Mr Asamoha’s hurriedly press conference was organized to impress the delegates in the April primaries to renew his mandate.
“I think it is irresponsible on the part of Yaw Buabeng to throw dust onto the eyes of Ghanaians simply because he wants to win his NPP primaries”, he added.
Mr Asamoah however messed himself up by calling on John Mahama who is the flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to respond. Respond to what? Dr Hayford asked in a short statement to respond to the NPP’s press conference held in Accra yesterday.
The chief convener fumed: “As a Lawyer I guess he ought to have known better and not made fun of himself in intellectual circles”. Was the name of John Mahama mentioned anywhere in the Airbus allegations? Dr Haford questioned.
In his words: “It is therefore absurd irresponsible and stupid to associate JM with this jacket. This is defamation which can send him to court.
More important is that the NDC had made a statement through the former truck accident lawyers, Maria Bruce and Company, dismissing the so called corruption”.
Besides Yaw Buabeng Asamoah ought to have known that the first job President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo gave Martin Amidu, the Special Prosecutor was to investigate John Mahama on the Airbus issue.
Mr Amidus’s two years investigation found no evidence and will find no evidence, Dr Haford confidently stated.
He rather asked the Special Prosecutor to investigate the missing tricycles, tractors, missing mining excavators, among others.
Recently, a former Ghanaian Attorney General & Minister for Justice, Marietta Brew Appiah-Opong rebuffed the media reports claiming that aircraft manufacturer, Airbus paid bribes to some senior officials during the Mills-Mahama regime.
The reports which emerged after the company admitted in a UK court that it paid bribes to officials in some five countries including Ghana between 2009 and 2015 have ignited rumours in Ghana.
Setting the record straight, Madam Appiah-Opong said: “The reports alleging that Airbus SE paid bribes during the administration of President John Evans Atta Mills and John Dramani Mahama are false, misleading and do not reflect the Approved Judgment”.
Indeed, the Approved Judgment of the Crown Court of Southwark approving the DPA between Airbus and the UK Serious Fraud Office does not allege that any payment was made by Airbus to any Ghanaian Government official, according to a press release issued by her.
“It is therefore a gross distortion for the media to conclude that officials of the Ghana Government between 2009 and 2015 were bribed or paid any commissions by Airbus for the acquisition of the Casa C-295 aircrafts”.
African Eye Report
