Former Deputy CEO of the National Youth Authority, Akosua Manu, has raised concerns about the credibility of President John Dramani Mahama’s directive to investigate allegations of suspected drug trafficking and money laundering at the Kotoka International Airport.
Speaking on Breakfast Daily on Channel One News, Manu expressed doubts about the impartiality of the probe, which was launched following claims by the Ranking Member of the Defence Committee, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour.
The Assin South MP alleged that two aircraft, including an AirMed jet, may have been used in illegal activities.
Manu argued that the credibility of the investigation had already been undermined by Government Spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu, who had released what she described as “questionable” videos to justify the extended stay of the aircraft.
According to her, Kwakye Ofosu’s explanations lacked credibility and were inconsistent with known facts surrounding the aircraft allegedly involved in the incident.
“The bottom line of this is, I don’t even trust the probe that the President is asking for. Because his spokesperson has already implicated the matter, not because we’ve seen parcels or anything as others are throwing in, but because the sequence of events shows there was a deliberate attempt to lie to the public,” she said.
“He told barefaced lies. He lied about the maintenance part, he lied about the aircraft, he lied about the maintenance schedule, and the route. On what basis did he even have that information to put out there?”
President Mahama on April 1 ordered a comprehensive investigation into Rev. Fordjour’s allegations, which were made at a press conference earlier that day. In response, Felix Kwakye Ofosu took to Facebook on April 6, stating that the aircraft had landed due to damaged landing gear tyres. He explained that engineers were flown in on a separate flight to make repairs, which accounted for the aircraft’s three-day stay in Ghana.Ghanaian fashion
Citing inconsistencies and what she described as attempts to mislead the public, Manu called for an independent, bipartisan investigation.
“I am calling for a bipartisan committee to look into the matter,” she stated.