National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Samuel Nartey George, has criticised President Akufo-Addo for his comments on the controversial ‘Agyapadie’ document.
The 38-page document, which has no identified author, prominently features the Okyenhene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin on the cover photo, followed by President Nana Akufo-Addo and his late father on the subsequent page.
Speaking at the Ghana Report Summit under the theme ‘Dealing with Misinformation and Disinformation in the Upcoming Election’, President Akufo-Addo, referenced the ‘Agyapadie’ document and claimed that a plot was orchestrated to tarnish his reputation ahead of the upcoming elections.
He suggested that he has been a target of a lot of fake news masterminded by his political opponents. This response comes after portions of the document started circulating in both traditional and social media spaces with just four months to the general elections.
“In the run-up to the 2008, 2012 and 2016 presidential elections, I was a target of numerous false and malicious stories attacking my credibility and integrity. In 2008, baseless allegations of drug trafficking were spread, along with numerous rumours about my health intended to cast doubt on my ability to serve as President.”
“Again, the 2012 election saw false reports of my alleged arrest in London for drug possession and fabricated quotes designed to stir ethnic tension. In 2016, it was alleged by sympathizers of the opposition that I had killed my late wife. Today, with a few months to the 2024 elections, they are at it again. The fabricated document entitled ‘Agyapadie’ is being spread around by operatives of the opposition as evidence of a grand scheme by my party to annex the assets of the state,” President Akufo-Addo recounted.
But Mr George has dismissed the President’s claims, urging Ghanaians not to take them seriously. He questioned why the President could blame political opponents when someone who was once a member of his government revealed more about the plot.
He argued that the President’s claim of deliberate attempts by his political opponents to spread misinformation is unfounded.
“I think it’s very rich coming from the president because this ‘Agyapadie’ document has been around for the past seven years. He has not found time to comment on it and now at the twilight of his campaign when it is obviously clear to Ghanaians that this state capture is calculated and orchestrated and had been planned with malice and forethought, he is trying to distance himself away from it.
When he says his political opponents, Hopeson Adorye is one of his own operatives who he used in the Serwaa Broni incident to facilitate many things and appointed him as Deputy National Security Coordinator in charge of airports. That does not mean a position in government. Hopeson is telling us what that document is…maybe they’ve fallen out because Hopeson has moved out with Alan, but does it mean that Hopeson who was part of the orchestration of this document is the one the president wants to tell us he’s a political opponent.
Respectfully, we would not consider the President’s comment and take them with any face value or seriousness”.