Claim: Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh has claimed that former President Mahama did not have an Ashanti among his ministers.
Verdict: This is false. DUBAWA Ghana has found some appointees in the Mahama administration with strong ties with the Ashanti Region.
Full Text
Running mate to the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has charged electorates in the Ashanti Region to vote against former president and flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress, John Mahama.
According to him, the former President was intolerant of people from the Ashanti Region and was not interested in working with them.
Speaking to NPP party supporters in Bantama on October 5, the former Energy Minister claimed that John Mahama, during his administration, had dismissed his ministerial appointees who were from the Ashanti Region.
“If you live in the Ashanti Region and you vote for John Mahama, you are accursed. He is the only president who, during his administration, sacked all his appointees from the Ashanti Region. He sacked Dr Kwabena Duffuor who was the Finance Minister, and did the same to Oteng Agyei who was the Energy Minister. He also sacked Betty Mould-Iddrisu. She is Agona and was sacked,” he said.
He also queried if the former president worked with ties to the Ashanti Region during his administration between 2012 and 2016
A video in which he can be heard making the claim has gone viral on social media with some news portals making publications featuring the claim. Some of these publications can be found here and here. A longer video version can be found on YouTube (25:00 – 26:00).
Verification
One of the names mentioned by Matthew Opoku Prempeh was Dr Joe Oteng Agyei, who served as the Minister for Energy under the John Atta-Mills-led administration.
After being sworn in as President in 2013, John Mahama appointed Dr Oteng Agyei as the Minister for Environment, Science & Technology. He was part of an inter-ministerial committee set up by John Mahama to deal with illegal mining.
The following year, he was among a host of others affected by a government reshuffle. Mr Akwasi Oppong Fosu took his position as Environment Minister. However, he was later appointed as Board Chair of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation in March 2015, a decision that attracted criticism from Civil Society Groups such as IMANI Ghana.
Peter Anarfi-Mensah, known for his strong ties to the Ashanti Region, was also appointed by John Mahama to be the minister in charge of the region in March 2015.
“Mr Anarfi-Mensah might not be a household name in national politics, but he is a strong NDC member in the Ashanti Region, and his nomination might not be a surprise to many party faithful in the region,” state media, Graphic.com.gh said of him in a publication announcing his appointment.
There were other Deputy Ministers of state including Joseph Yamin who was Deputy Sports Minister from the Ashanti Region appointed during the tenure by ex-president John Mahama.
Conclusion
Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh’s assertion that John Mahama did not work with the Ashanti during his tenure is false. Dr Joe Oteng Agyei and Mr Peter Anarfi-Mensah were appointed under Mahama’s administration to serve as Minister for Environment, Science & Technology, and Ashanti Regional Minister, respectively.