Under the tantalizing title “NPP Chairman Has a Double ” that appeared on Ghanaweb on Friday February 9, 2007 and attributed to PALAVER, it was reported that :”The Insight has been painstakingly investigating the conviction of a Peter Mac Manu for immigration fraud and illegal importation of currency into the USA”.
The alleged painstaking investigation, according to the article, took the writer to the national headquarters of NPP and New York. As the current Chairman of NPP-USA, I had more than a passing interest and was drawn by the headline, especially since it appeared in the GHANAIANS ABROAD section of Ghanaweb. Not that I have anything to be afraid of but everything to protect. As a member of NPP my curiosity was piqued by the mention of the name of our National Chairman Peter Mac Manu in the very second line, followed by the mention of NPP Headquarters in Accra.
However further reading of the article shows it as a simple exercise in sensationalism that forces a link between two unrelated people by impugning the integrity of the more famous one thorough a catchy headline. Ostensibly, someone called Peter Mac Akwasi Manu living in New York is in court for some malfeasance and this Akwasi Manu is no kin and certainly not the same person as the NPP National Chairman. So why does Palaver force a “palava” on innocent people who are busy and oceans away minding their own business? This is like mentioning President Kufuor each time one has to write about the footballer of the same last name. It will not fit. One’s story about defending goals has nothing to do with the other’s story about the affairs of state. Certainly if the President’s person is indirectly implicated for some wrong that the footballer does, then it will be a misleading and dangerous “palava”. The funny thing is that the Insight/Palaver never talked to the NPP National Chairman as part of the painstaking investigation. He was out of Ghana and certainly not in New York during this alleged transcontinental investigation.
I have personally been once the subject of a reckless, irresponsible and sensational reporting by Palaver. This time we say enough! People work very hard for their names and integrity. Surely no one person has a lock on any combination of names. If a Kofi A. Boateng does some wrong in Austria, any reporter should be careful not to intentionally hitch the poor soul’s wagon to that of Kofi A. Boateng of New York and NPP-USA Chairman. At the minimum, a phone call for clarification would not be asking too much. We must take ourselves seriously and respect the people we vote into office. If we cannot appreciate their sacrifices for the common good, we should at least refrain from any semblance of hinting unfounded and baseless wrongdoing to them. In due course, Mr. Peter Mac Manu, the NPP National Chairman will speak for himself and the outcome will not be pretty for the Insight/Palaver- Enough!
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