Minister Runs Riot - Insults Galore At Metro TV

Wednesday’s edition of Metro’s TV ‘Good Morning Ghana’ was marred by yet another unruly behavior displayed by the deputy Minister for the Interior, Kobby Acheampong, who was a guest on the live show.

Mr Acheampong apparently lost his self control, and went for the jugular of the host, Shamima Muslim, attacking her personality.

The deputy Minister accused her of being influenced by some unknown paymasters.

He refused to respect her capacity as moderator of the show and rather accused her of playing tricks on the show when she insisted Kobby should stick to the subject under discussion and stop discussing other things that had not been raised for analysis.

The deputy Minister was captured on the live programme throwing his hands around in anger and virtually pushing his fingers directly into the face of Shamima as he refused to allow her to play her role as host.

“I understand the way you operate, I understand the way you operate very well and I won’t fall for that. I will not fall for your trick. You can ask your question but I will not fall for it,” Kobby charged on Shamima and basically refused to let her take control of the programme as he was asked to respond to a challenge thrown by Sammy Awuku that the NDC founder, Jerry John Rawlings and President Atta Mills were not on speaking terms.

“You cannot now tell me what questions to ask. You are free not to answer…..what do you mean by you understand the way I operate? What do you mean by that? How do I operate? I ask you questions that you find uncomfortable? What tricks are you talking about? That if I have a question I cannot ask? You are free not to answer the question and that is Kobby Acheampong for you. Ah! I am not amused at all but anyway,” Shamima retorted.

The deputy Minister’s behavior and refusal to let Shamima play her role led to an abrupt end to the programme and Daily Guide’s sources at the television station said Kobby continued to rain insults on her even after the show had been taken off air.

The sources said the altercation continued even to the car park of Metro TV, drawing the attention of a small crowd to watch the drama of a deputy Minister insulting a female television host in public.

Kobby was said to have bragged openly that he knew Shamima’s “pay masters” and also described her as a “stupid girl” who “jumps from one place to another” and an ‘aboa’, to wit a fool, as he walked to his car.

He was also reported to have accused Shamima of receiving a text on the show from the so-called paymasters.

Shamima was reported to have asked the deputy Minister to explain what he meant by her jumping from one place to another. The lady, in retaliation, insinuated that she was not a homosexual like the deputy minister. “Kwasea, homo like you!” Shamima was said to have told the deputy minister.”

This is not the first time Kobby Acheampong has been accused of being a homosexual by a female.

In 2008, he appeared on the ‘Good Morning Ghana’ programme, together with Frances Assiam of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), on the same station and engaged her in a brawl characterized by sexually explicit language to the extent that the host of the show then, Yaro Kasambata, currently with the NPA, could not moderate anymore and the programme had to be abruptly taken off air. Mr. Acheampong, during the show, was reported to have referred to Ms. Assiam as a prostitute who enjoyed having sex with small boys.

In response, Ms. Assiam was alleged to have told Mr. Acheampong that if she was a prostitute and enjoyed sex with small boys, then he had also been engaging in anal sex with ex-President Rawlings, founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The issue put up for analysis yesterday was on a DAILY GUIDE story which credited another newspaper, Al-Hajj, over reports that there was a frosty relationship between Jerry Rawlings and President Atta Mills and so the former was contemplating fraternizing with the NPP.

On the show, Sammy Awuku, who represented the NPP, said the report was credible and added that he had reliable reports that President Mills had neither called nor even had any meeting with Rawlings after the NDC Sunyani Congress.

According to Mr Awuku, it would be in the NDC’s interest to stop demonizing Rawlings and rather make peace with him.

When it was Kobby’s turn to comment on the story, he said DAILY GUIDE’s report could not have been credible because the paper quoted another media house. He then went straight for the Presidential Candidate of the NPP, Nana Akufo-Addo, accusing him of drug-related charges.

Shamima Muslim’s attempt to get Kobby to stick to the issue on the table, was what angered him and sent him running riot on the live show.