The Deputy General of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Obiri Boahen says if the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has any qualms with the Senior Minister, Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo, they should proceed to court and desist from organising “unnecessary” press conferences.
Reacting to a press conference organised by the NDC on Monday, arguing that the government was scheming to oust the Auditor-General, Mr Daniel Yaw Domelevo, because he has disallowed and surcharged the Senior Minister for some US$1 million paid to Kroll and Associates, a UK private firm, and questioning the nature of a professional services it offered to the government to warrant the payment, Nana Obiri Boahen said the comments made by the NDC General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah at the press conference in relation to the matter was prejudicial.
He described Mr Asiedu Nketiah’s comments as something coming from “fickle-minded” politicians and said the party should resort to a legal action to solve the matter if it so wish.
The NDC had argued at the press conference that the government was using the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) to harass Mr Domelevo because of his stance against Mr Osafo Maafo.
Nana Obiri Boahen in a radio interview with Accra based Class FM on Monday evening [November 25, 2019] asked why the NDC was linking the purported feud with the Auditor-General and the Ghana Audit Service board chairman, Mr Dua Agyeman and concluding that EOCO had initiated investigations into alleged procurement breaches at the service because of that feud and Mr Domelevo’s stance on disallowing and surcharging Mr Osafo Maafo.
“Do you think that Asiedu Nketiah is a serious character that Ghanaians should be wasting our time on. First I am reliably informed that there is a legal tussle between Asiedu Nketiah and Dua Agyeman, if that is true then his comments about Dua Agyeman is prejudicial and dangerous and contemptuous. Why is he behaving like a… because Dua Agyeman has sued you Asiedu Nketiah and the matter is before court, therefore you are not supposed to make any prejudicial comment which will already worsen the contemptuous conduct you have exhibited,” he said.
Making references to the constitution of Ghana, Nana Obiri Boahen urged the NDC to go to court, arguing that the Auditor-General has gone to the Supreme Court about the mandate of EOCO to investigate him, “why don’t you wait for the outcome of the matter.”
“Asiedu Nketiah and the NDC are interested in playing to the gallery, they don’t cheapen themselves like that…, they don’t reduce politics to the level of mediocrity, serious minded Ghanaians are thinking about the country and the future there of…” he added.
He said the matter was before the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court will pronounce on that and “all of us will learn a lot from it. Have you taken the pains to read about the OccupyGhana vs Auditor-General Supreme Court decision, find out from Asiedu Nketiah if he has ever read it.
He said, “if they [NDC] are cheapening themselves, some of us are matured enough, we will not descend into the gutter like that, the matter is before the Supreme Court.”
Nana Obiri Boahen said: “matured minds should wait for the outcome [of the Supreme Court case] because whilst some are saying that EOCO has exceeded its limit, others are also saying that Auditor-General has exceeded his limit. Now the parties are in court, interpretation, has EOCO the right to investigate the Auditor General, or the vice versa…,you wait for the Supreme Court to pronounce on that.”
He insisted that, “there has been a lot of cases which has gone to the Supreme Court and all of us have learnt a good number of lessons,” with the recent one being that of Exton Cubic.
He added that the worse of what the NDC said at Monday’s press conference was the call for President Akufo-Addo to order the arrest of Osafo Maafo, “fickle minded politicians,” he described it.
“If for one reason or the other, you think that Osafo Maafo has done something which is in violation or breach of the law, you can proceed to court,” he advised and added that the case must be considered on its own merit and that “the law is not like mathematics where one plus one is equal to two… they cannot reduce politics into mediocrity and expect some of us to follow,” he added.