'Stranded Upper East journalists’ were not part of official presidential press team - Hamid

The Minister of Information, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid has stated that the stranded journalists who were on their way to cover President Akufo-Addo’s tour of parts of the Upper East Region, were not part of the official Presidential press corps.

Reacting to a publication he abandoned the stranded journalists who were on board a rickety 2017 sprinter bus, the Minister in a release said: “The group of journalists who are said to have been stranded were not part of the official presidential press team. Apparently, the Public Relations Officer of the Regional Co-ordinating Council, Godwin Nkunu, hired this bus for some other journalists chosen by him and unknown to the Presidential Communication team”

Read full text of his response below;

5th October, 2017

For Immediate Release

RE: INFORMATION MINISTER LEAVES JOURNALISTS STRANDED AFTER RICKETY BUS BREAKS DOWN

My attention has been drawn to a story with the above headline on Ghanaweb. I wish to make clear the following:

The vehicle that broke down was NOT the vehicle that was hired for journalists in the region by the Director of Communications at the Presidency. The Director of Communication has a dedicated corps of journalists in every region who cover presidential trips. In the Upper West Region, they were transported in a Nissan Coaster bus. In the Upper East Region they were given a Hyundai H1 bus.

The group of journalists who are said to have been stranded were not part of the official presidential press team. Apparently, the Public Relations Officer of the Regional Co-ordinating Council, Godwin Nkunu, hired this bus for some other journalists chosen by him and unknown to the Presidential Communication team.

The Minister for Information merely chanced upon their broken down vehicle because he attended hospital and, therefore, did not join the official convoy. They were in the company of Godwin Nkunu who was at that time making calls to get them another vehicle. Even so, the Minister stopped and also asked that a vehicle be procured from Bolga to pick them up.

But, the journalists themselves said that it will be difficult to get any good vehicle in Bolga at the time. The Minister who had room in his vehicle for three people, picked three journalists and proceeded while instructing the PRO of the RCC (Godwin Nkunu) to stay and find a vehicle for them to catch up with the Presidential team.

Indeed, Godwin Nkunu found them another vehicle and they continued as scheduled.

……signed……

Mustapha Abdul-Hamid

Minister for Information