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The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has dismissed reports that he has initiated movements to contest the presidential position for the ruling New Patriotic Party.
Reports have abounded that Afriyie Akoto over the weekend began a private meeting with some of the NPP’s top power brokers in Kumasi, Ashanti region, to reveal his presidential ambition to them.
The weekend meeting in Kumasi, where he allegedly revealed his intention to top-level party members, was reportedly held at his home in Danyame, near the parks and gardens.
But in a statement, the Minister of Food and Agriculture said he was only in Kumasi to rest after suffering from a fever after reading the budget.
Dr. Afriyie Akoto, however, did not confirm or deny in his statement whether he will contest the presidency when nominations open.
“I decided to go to Kumasi and get some rest for the weekend and try to recover from the fever I had after attending the budget reading in parliament on Friday March 12, 2021. As a former member of parliament in the region and as a high-ranking member of this government, I agreed to grant an audience to some party executives who had been making calls for a meeting to discuss matters related to the welfare of the party. However, such gatherings will end with an amount given as transportation to guests who came from far and near. ”
Below is the full statement from Dr. Afriyie Akoto
STATEMENT OF HON. DR. OWUSU AFRIYIE AKOTO ON THE DETAILS OF THE MEETINGS HELD WITH PNP EXECUTIVES IN THE ASHANTI REGION.
I have duly taken into account information that circulates both on social and traditional networks that claims to be a summary of a result of a meeting held with party executives in the Ashanti region “to supposedly announce my candidacy for the post of flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party ”.
The narrators, for reasons best known to them, maliciously sought to court public disaffection for me by making outrageous claims and accusations.
Therefore, I would like to present the following facts:
1. Under the New Patriotic Party constitution, no nominations have been opened for interested candidates to announce their intentions to run for any position in the party. It is therefore regrettable that someone tries to create the impression that I held a meeting to announce my candidacy for the post of “standard bearer” of the party.
2. I decided to go to Kumasi and get some rest for the weekend and try to recover from the fever I had after attending the budget reading in parliament on Friday March 12, 2021. As a former parliamentarian for the region and as a high-ranking member of this government, I agreed to grant an audience to some party executives who had been making calls for a meeting to discuss matters related to the welfare of the party. However, such gatherings will end with an amount given as transportation to guests who came from far and near.
3. The narrators stated that I spent up to GH 1,000,000.00 Ghana Cedis at said meeting to announce my offer for the position. Not only is this incorrect, it could only be in the imagination of the one making those claims. Meeting with 17 constituency executives for each of the 47 constituencies in my home meant I was getting around 700 delegates. My house does not have the capacity to accommodate such numbers. So how can it be assumed that I paid almost a million Ghana Cedis to these nuclear power plant executives in one day?
4. In addition, the narrators claimed that I promised to distribute tractors and motorcycles to party executives. This is another lie. Considering the fact that these tractors are intended solely for agricultural purposes, I will never use their allocation or distribution for my personal political ambition. The processes for the acquisition and distribution of this equipment are clearly detailed and there is no way that it will be compromised for other purposes that are not delivered to the farmers and groups of farmers who deserve it in the country.
5. Another regrettable claim from the narrators is that I tried to take advantage of my long-term relationship with President Akufo Addo to pursue my political ambition. It is no secret that I have a very close relationship with President Akufo Addo that predates our political careers. But it can only be a figment of one’s imagination to assume that I will put the president in such an awkward position by using his name in the campaign.
Especially when he has issued a strong warning to members of his government to refrain from such conduct. I believe that my relationship with the President should be the reason why I should continue to do my best to help make his second term a continued success.
6. Therefore, it is regrettable to note that I, with this understanding, would be the one to cause the distraction and try to derail our government’s focus by announcing my ambitions at this time. There is a deliberate effort on the part of my detractors inside and outside my party to cause disaffection between the party and myself and between the government and myself that I have worked so hard for in the last four years. These people think that the easiest way to do this is to introduce tribal politics.
7. The issue of roads in the Ashanti region is a typical example of tribal politics to which I refer. The fact is that during the cause of the meeting, some executives expressed their concern about the infrastructure deficit in the region and asked me to use my close ties with the President to push for the construction of more roads and other infrastructure for the region.
In response, I explained that His Excellency’s Government, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, had done much in the past four years to close the infrastructure gap not only in the Ashanti region but throughout the country, despite admitting that there was so much more to do. How anyone could interpret this as saying that the government has neglected the roads of the Ashanti region really is beyond my wildest imagination.
8. As people who know me attest, I do not subscribe to tribal politics.
In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that I believe in a decent political discourse, free from insults, lies and disgrace.
Therefore, I will encourage each and every one, including the media, to refrain from acts that tend to derail the historic achievements made by the Government of His Excellency Nana Akufo Addo and ensure the continuation of development.
Allow me to take this opportunity to renew my unwavering commitment to the goals set by the President for his second term.
Signed
Hon. Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto
Minister of Agriculture and Food
March 18, 2021
— starrfm
