John Dramani Mahama, Former President of Ghana
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Bole-Bamboi Constituency, has called on the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana COCOBOD, Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo to leave the former President John Mahama alone and concentrate on bettering the lives suffering of cocoa farmers, who have virtually lost trust and hope in the NPP's government.
Mr. Boahen Aidoo was speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, November 1, 2017 to respond to allegations of mismanagement of the cocoa sector by the Minority in Parliament, where he leveled a number of allegations against the Mahama government.
“The penchant to siphon funds through inflated contracts was rampant in the NDC-Opuni administration through ill-conceived construction contracts in the cocoa sector.
These contracts were awarded without proper value for money analysis, bringing into question the motive for the contract for instance, to construct a guest house at Bole in the Northern Region, which was needless at the time it was awarded. President John Mahama was said to have influenced the awarding to enable him enjoy a comfortable holiday during his visit to his constituency,” he said.
In a statement issued on Friday, November 3, 2017 and by the Deputy Communication Officer for Bole-Bamboi Constituency of NDC, Abdulai Abdul Jalilu, said the statement made by Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo against the former President John Mahama on the controversial COCOBOD Bole guest house as highly unfortunate and regrettable.
According to him NPP has one agenda to make former President John Mahama unattractive to Ghanaians after they have realized, the very people who voted them into power are beginning to get disappointed in their administration as day goes by.
"If not, how can a mere renovation of an existing CRIG guest house be a Mahama's wrong deed", he added.
"If the NPP is ready jittery about the President's current political waves, then they better fasten their belts because the instability in their party, after any official announcement for his 2020 contest, will be extremely unbearable. No dirt, mud thrown at him will stick".
He is therefore demanding an unqualified apology from the CEO for insinuating the renovation of the facility in Bole, as undeserving. "An indirect pointer to the people of Bole as second class humans".
Below is the full statement
NDC BOLE-- BAMBOI CONSTITUENCY, RESPONSE TO BOAHEN AIDOO
The Bole Bamboi Constituency woke up to the shocking headline on Citi Fm online portal:
"COCOBOD BUILT BOLE GUEST HOUSE FOR MAHAMA'S COMFORT", by which The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana cocobod Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo, tagged the construction of the guest house in the premises of the Bole branch of the cocoa research institute as "frivolous activities". We consider the statement highly unfortunate and regrettable.
Considering the continuous baseless attacks on President Mahama since 7th January, It's becoming clearer, the NPP has one agenda: to make President Mahama unattractive to the good people of Ghana after they've realized, the very people who voted them into power are beginning to get disappointed in their administration as day goes by.
If not, how can a mere renovation of an existing CRIG guest house be a Mahama's wrong deed.
If the NPP is already jittery about the President's current political waves, then they better fasten their belts because the instability in their party, after any official announcement for his 2020 contest, will be extremely unbearable. No dirt, mud thrown at him will stick.
To begin with, we are demanding an unqualified apology from the CEO for insinuating the renovation of the facility in Bole, as undeserving. An indirect pointer to the people of Bole as second class humans.
The CEO should have done his background checks before coming out with those insulting comments.
It must be made emphatically clear that the Bole cocoa research institute guest house existed as a property of COCOBOD before Mahama became a Member of Parliament for the Bole-Bamboi constituency.
The former President started lodging in the guest house after he was made a running mate to the late professor Mills of blessed memory. That decision was made in fulfilment to security protocol. Otherwise former President John Dramani Mahama has a more befitting home he can spend his holidays in anytime he visits home.
The renovation of the facility was necessary because it was defacing in value and not accommodating to some very important personalities and officials of cocobod, and other equal VIP state officials. Cocobod therefore took that decision to renovate the entire facility in the interest of the board and nation .
Bugri Naabu, the Northern regional Chairman of the NPP and the current Northern regional minister, always choose to reside in that guest house anytime they visit Bole. Please has Mr John Boahen Aidoo asked the reasons why government appointees chose that guest house over the numerous hotels in town?
The amount of revenue accrued by the guest house in a year to cocoa research institute is so significant that, the renovation shouldn't have been described as frivolous.
It must also be made known to Mr CEO that Mahama took no pesewa from the revenue generated by the guest house during his tenure as President and has not taken any cedi as a former President from the guest house.
If a CEO of COCOBOD can describe the building and renovation of a guest house as a "frivolous activity", then any wonder why most several construction works initiated by the then NDC government have been halted in the district since their assumption of power.? Many are asking whether the CEO would have described the renovated facility as frivolous if it was located in Kyebi.
I believe strongly that other appointees of this Nana Addo led government shares the same view with Mr John Boahen Aidoo and that is why the construction of our Training college, Nursing college, several road works are on halt across the breadth and length of the district.
We are on this note calling on the CEO to leave the former President alone and concentrate on bettering the lives suffering of cocoa farmers, who have virtually lost trust and hope in this government.
...Signed..
Abdulai Abdul-Jalilu (Deputy Communication officer)
NDC Bole-Bamboi Constituency
