'Intolerant' Akufo-Addo bodyguards prevent man from asking him questions in US

The man who asked president Akufo-Addo about the arrest and deportation of Aisha Huang during a forum at Princeton University in the United States of America says he was prevented by the president’s bodyguards from participating in another forum held in New Jersey.

Solomon Owusu says he had 10 questions to ask the president during the first encounter but was unable to do so, as such, he registered to participate in the second forum at Rutgers University, New Jersey.

According to him, he applied online, got approval and his conference code was sent to him but upon arrival at the venue, he was told by persons believed to be the president's bodyguards that he could not enter the conference room without any reason.

"Macho men from Ghana told me they have been instructed not to allow me to enter the conference hall. I asked why and they were bossy… so I told them f*** you; you're in the United States and not in Ghana... you can't bring that bush life here," a visibly angry Solomon Owusu explained in a video cited online by GhanaWeb.

Solomon Owusu believes he was prevented from participating in the forum because of the Aisha Huang question he asked at the earlier encounter.

President Nana Akufo-Addo answering the question from Solomon said, government’s decision to deport the Chinese national after her reported involvement in illegal mining was a mistake.

“I think the decision to deport Aisha Huang in hindsight was a mistake and that is why that process and procedure is being stopped,” he said at the forum at Princeton University during his visit to the United States of America.

Aisha Huang gained some notoriety after her arrest in May 2017 and was tagged as the Galamsey Queen.

She had been charged with three counts of undertaking small-scale mining operations, contrary to Section 99 (1) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703); providing mining support services without valid registration with the Minerals Commission, contrary to the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), and the illegal employment of foreign nationals, contrary to the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573).

During the prosecution, the government controversially discontinued the case and deported her in December 2018. Solomon Owusu indicated that he flew from Colorado to Rutgers University just to ask another question because he couldn't get the opportunity to ask all his 10 questions when he engaged the president earlier but unfortunately, he was denied entry.