Nobody pays $20k to see Akufo-Addo – Government

Presidential spokesperson, Mustapha Hamid, has denied allegations that some people at the presidency and within the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) are charging $20,000 from private individuals who want to gain access to President Nana Akufo-Addo at the Flagstaff House.

The allegation was made by Assin Central MP, Kennedy Agyapong, who said it was important that people close to Nana Akufo-Addo at the presidency draw his attention to the canker before it is too late.

But reacting to the allegation on Class91.3FM’s Executive Breakfast Show (EBS), Mr Hamid wondered why people will pay $20,000 to see the President when they can do so just by queuing.

Talking about the processes involved in seeing the President, Mr Hamid told show host, Moro Awudu, on Wednesday, 6 September 2017 that: “If you want to see the President, you’ll need to tell me ‘Mustapha Hamid, I want to see the President’ and when I see the President, I’ll tell the President, Moro Awudu, morning show host of Class FM, wants to come and see you. He may ask what for or he may not ask depending on the circumstances so if I tell him that morning show host, he may assume that it is an interview and then he will say talk to Saratu Atta [President's Personal Assistant] who is responsible for my scheduling and then I’ll go to Saratu Atta and say the President has given me clearance to schedule for a certain Moro Awudu to come and see him and then she will look through the calendar and give you a date [let’s say 25 September at 3:00pm Moro Awudu to see the president] and that’s all it takes.”

He added: “And I can tell you that for everybody who has certain closeness with the President, whether it is Asenso or Abu Jinapor or anybody, this is exactly what will happen. They will seek the clearance from the President and the President will say go and see Saratu Atta for an appointment. That is what happens so why do you have to pay $20,000?”

Mr Hamid argued that the President and Vice President operate an open-door-policy especially in their homes on weekends and so wondered why anyone would pay to see them.

“For a few weeks now, the President has not been able to honour a certain schedule, but in the beginning the President even used to take days off to go and sit at the NPP headquarters in the open for everybody to come and talk to him because people go and sometimes it’s not formal… you go to the Vice President’s house, it’s a beehive of activities at weekends so it will baffle me to have to pay when you can queue,” he stated.