“Frontom frontom fom, atupan pan pam”, this is the proverbial Towncrier with a STOP PRESS Petition and a call to True Democracy at the dawn of election 2020.
Let me kick off by re-stating categorically that upon critical contextual review, the unaccountable “Agyapa” deal, seem designed as an Apex corruption syndication within H.E. Akufo Addo’s governance.
In my view unless Ghana implements effective Campaign Finance laws with monitoring indices, which I champion as a matter of national urgency, political savvy and consequential COMPETENCE in CORRUPTION by both NPP/NDC operational modalities, will wholly derail Ghana’s democratic and economic development as well as lead to a predictable security implosion.
Mr. President, I speak from an objective and knowledgeable base as Legal Counsel in forensic/ diagnostic audits of the underbelly of institutional /state corruption resulting in the passage of causing financial loss laws.
I also confidently speak as a former Legal Counsel to Ghana National Security with a dual Investigative and National and ECOWAS Sub-Regional small arms control portfollio, as a West African focal point with Continental and International collaboration at UN and AU levels, which have been rendered dysfunctional due to my sworn non- corruption compliance, thus, creating dismal insecurity in Ghana due lack of project implementation and small arms influx with attendant miscreants with terrorism and money – laundering potential which constitute injustices to Ghana.
Honestly Mr. President, as regards Free Speech, if I were not extremely cautious, I would reasonably conclude that your government has used it’s very high level influential and close links with the ownership of citifm to effect a ban on my public interest/anti corruption article titled “Agyapa, hidden dilemmas of a Royalty gold deal” from citifm online portal and from public readership in critical violation of the key democratic tenet of FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
Most Respectfully, I have played an Ombudsman role regarding headlong financial malfeasance and called Presidential bluff regarding non- discretionary and dubious financial appointments. I have also critiqued your inability as Attorney General to prosecute current Finance Minister cousin, Mr Ofori Attah on the $2m Obotan case which is not unlike the Woyome case.
Your Excellency, I have further called into question the credibility of the track record of Data Bank as Transaction Advisors for the Agyapa gold Royalty deal when $12m SSNIT funds remain missing under their watch since 2002, unless evidence to the contrary can be provided.
Thus overall, I have given a different substantive perspective to solely technical competence analysis, which is undermined by preponderance of self – dealing and prior track record indicators creating lack of Public Trust. ***Hey presto, my article disappears from Citi FM that virtually solicited it by asking that I write a prose article after my poetic expose’ of the corrupt state of the nation as a tribute to my father Dr K.A.Busia was published by myjoyfmonline.
Indeed, Mr. President whereas one would not want to be presumptive that Your Excellency, a most reputable human rights lawyer, would support such a major blemish on your democratic credentials, immediately after your usual pre -election ritual visit to my father Kofi Abrefa Busia’s graveside for politically expedient votes, does the rather strong circumstantial evidence not speak for itself?
Mr. President, My father as a symbol of true democracy in Africa is uncomfortably embossed on NPP politics, while his Progress Party has ceased to exist. Sincerely, a shameless banning by proxy of my article would only portray disloyalty to your Presidential portfolio and inconsistency as regards your stated position on corruption and democracy in amazing parallel collusion with Madam Ama Bame, ‘Busia’s antagonistic denial of same article in NPP’s Daily Guide newspaper affiliate.
Truly Mr. President, What are the odds that this dual political and simultaneous blood betrayal by NPP’s accredited mother, in linkage with a media house, Citifm also associated with NPP to paint a public interest goodwill article in a prejudicial and negative light by its removal, is simply coincidental?
• Sɛbi Taflatse, Mr President, since stones are being throne from powerful glass houses, one wonders why the denial and banning of my Agyapa article has not rather been applied to the CEO of DVLA to stop serial brow raising schemes including the triple over priced safety kits relative to market costs which DVLA attempted to push down the throats of Ghanaians by compulsion.
There is also the recent digital license plate brouhaha with different imported vehicles spotting the same license plates, the compulsory eye – popping, badly conceived road side vehicle towing scheme which was withdrawn as well as the exhorbitant compulsory “luxury” vehicle tax which has also been suspended.
Let me ask pointedly, whether these various seeming banal schemes were not repetitive under-cover attempts to siphon public moneys into NPP party coffers under the direct auspices of the Presidency with Mr. Osafo Marfo Snr. as the DVLA overhead handler? Indeed Why has Madam Ama Busia not denied the DVLA syndications and cover ups including the deftly withdrawn safety kit “Riot Act”
• Mr. President, who was given the nationwide safety kit supply contract? what is the relationship to the Presidency and under what procurement regimen was the safety kit contract awarded? What audit has been done to assess the financial loss to the country after the nation-wide roll out was as quick as lightening withdrawn? Has the modalities not been covered up and the DVLA CEO, Madam Ama Bame Busia’s son shielded?
Indeed, the Transport Minister who should have had the command control of DVLA was sidelined and claimed he had no knowledge of this Safety kit matter and other DVLA scandals and the Information Minister also repudiated it, calling it an act to undermine the Akufo Addo government!
If so WHO and WHAT is shielding Kwasi Agyeman Twum, ‘Busia’ who has also falsely been paraded in the Daily Graphic as my Father Kofi Busia’s son for political advantage and is also publicly declared as undermining the NPP / Akufo Addo government?
• What a fine ironic intrigue.
*** Conversely, Why am I, Kofi Busia’s daughter, exhibiting traits just like him, against would- be oppressive corrupt practise, in the form of a tinged veritable Agyapa suicidal pill to be administered to a bankrupt Ghana as though it were a safe medicinal pill, not even entitled to make a public interest statement without drawn swords from so called “Busia” denials and implicit governmental censorship and abuse of my cardinal human right to Free protected Speech?
• Dear Reader
What is going on is a very complex internal Corruption “civil war” where the Powerful history makers are scared of the content of my brain and their own mocking wicked guilty shadows. In a Ghana where investigative journalism and expression of ideals or thought leadership can get one killed, is the effective ban on my “Agyapa” gold article not an issue of immense or critical public concern that should be condemned by all?
***Dear reader, I have no axe to grind, this is not about purity of blood or political/ family trivia or name adoption. ***”The heart of the matter ” is about the sanctity and preservation of premium and unblemished Busia legacy by his supposed Proteges, both political and those with family ties, showcasing a corruption inspired NPP elephant stampede which is anathema as well as unbridled ambitions to follow Kofi Busia footsteps with hollowness and contradictory dishonor rather than a conscientious National Interest Imperative. That is all.
• I am also using DVLA as an exemplary illustration of a systemic Ghana problem of NPP/NDC institutional dysfunction whereby appointments to “cash cow” institutions including SSNIT, COCOBOD, BOST, GHAPOHA, GNPC, TOR, etc in the absence of effective campaign finance laws are precarious political appointments whereby the entrenched covert functions of well remunerated CEO’s, are to find ways and means to grease party coffers including with ‘manicured’, greedy sole sourced contracts and kick backs and direct reportage to the Presidency and or top party honchos.
This is even more pronounced where the CEO is a party financier with self-interest to recoup their own funds. This is our Ghana that needs a political sanity overhaul.
Consequently, *this is why we have already had an NPP scandal at BOST covered up and overridden by the BNI. *THIS is why ongoing Finance Ministry escapades are becoming increasingly infamous. *THIS is what makes Kofi Osafo Marfo’s transfer to Agyapa as CEO after his SSNIT training most troubling. *THIS is why Kwasi Twum’s machinations at DVLA makes him a victim of his secret ambitions as well as his corruption – compliant appointment like the other listed examples including the impudent GHAPOHA boss residential renovation and insider dealing saga. Indeed the CEO’s of National Banks tend to be part of a required political corruption compliance syndrome.
*Dear fellow citizens, THIS is why all these appointments are politically sensitive and change with incoming NPP/NDC governments and are reserved for party faithfuls with high level connections. *THIS is why there is a SSNIT NDC digitization scandal AND *THIS is also why significantly, there is an ongoing prosecution of former NDC COCOBOD boss Opuni as well as most interestingly a former NDC National Security Deputy Coordinator for corruption and causing financial loss.
In this cyclical citizen/politician corruption collusion, the accusers in opposition become corruption implementors in government with vote buying normalized as perennially cheated citizens demand their pound of flesh at election season. What a sad racket!
Mr. President, The Busia name and image as you very well know is synonymous with Excellent Scholarship and integrity as well as adverse to corruption and highly respected for Sincerity of dedicated Public Service world wide. Thus it should not be fused with serial corruption syndications in consonance with underhand economic management misleadership. THIS is why I have written cogently with supporting facts about the Agyapa deal which I find circumstantially unwholesome.
My father Kofi Busia as Prime Minister of Ghana and Head of the Progress Party government struggled to structure Ghana’s significant debt payments with a pervasive rural development collaborative policy as well as what he termed Ghananisation of the economy which had a technological and self-help incentive and national dignity objective.
There is proof of cabinet discussions that show that he was willing to absorb the political cost of transparent financial management in national interest. Please Let us not soil his distinguished legacy and his good name while we spin spooky wheels in an era of debt forgiveness.
Mr. President, Any vindictive traumatizing stint by your administration and its allies against me for conserving his legacy while standing up for Ghana First against ANY corruption tainted democracy is an unacceptable outrage.
Mr President, in May 2019 you signed into law the Freedom of Information Act, calling its passage a monumental feat which would concretize transparent and accountable governance. Why then has a moratorium been placed on my Agyapa gold article which has been singled out of the many articles on the subject? Can Ghana also censor the Mid- East and Africa edition of the Economist newspaper that has raised similar concerns?
Mr President, if my protected democratic speech which is consistent with freedom of information has so inspired wrath as to be abolished, how can your government be trusted?
Citi FM
As regards Citi FM’s Shameful damnation of Free Speech:I am most politely requesting that Citi FM kindly use positive high level power channels to reinstate my insightful Agyapa article with a public apology.
The disappearance of my article has exposed Citi FM’s claim to neutrality as a champion of good governance and functional democracy watchdog as not factual. This matter of a comprehensive objective critique of Agyapa gold deal has shown Citi FM as not even representing Freedom of Speech as a major media institution with world wide coverage and that is a sad and worrying development.
Mr Samuel Attah Mensa is it not absolutely shameful that Citi FM a major and widely respected media house would damn protected free speech?
Mr. BERNARD Avle how did this faux pas happen? Where is the acclaimed neutrality of Citi FM now involved in suppression of free speech?
Let me ask, Who calls the real shots at the celebrated Citi FM? This is a huge retrogression in the media landscape. Oh Citi FM the beloved media mogul, how has the mighty fallen?
***Fellow citizens, can you not see that my Agyapa article has rather been elevated in the annals of Ghana history as a must read and a turning point in H.E. AkufoA-ddo democratic Governance? One would have to go far down history lane to find such an occurrence which is a definite blight on the HE Akufo-Addo eventual legacy.
• Friends in the media and Civil Society are you going to look askance at this attack on Press Freedom? Let me also ask all right thinking Ghanaians and the objective media if theres any left in Ghana to condemn this Free Speech censorship which has exposed Ghana’s thin democratic facade.
My analytical writings have a meaningful objective to cause revelatory and cataclysmic positive change in corrupt democratic practise in order to uplift the image of Ghana’s paperweight democracy that is parading as Africa’s leader in democratic dispensation to be part of divine healing Grace and to give relevant gravitas to our continent so that we can sit comfortably among the comity of nations with pride. AND, THAT IS ALL.
