Rejoinder: Manasseh’s Folder – A presidential rant without substance

Manasseh Azure, I like your style of writing, you have a nice way of mincing words where your hypocritical stance on issues need to remain ambiguous, albeit understood perfectly for the meaning intended. Your piece, criticising the President’s speech, this time though, was a semi-masked insult of a rather empty rant that made no sense. Don’t jump the gun, I’ll soon tell you why! I do not know whether there is a score somewhere at the Presidency you want to settle by trying to lamely jab the President. He is used to that, anyway, so miasmic sputter as that your article turned out to be nauseates him not. We do understand that of your kind there are many who walk amongst great men and get trampled upon every now and then.

You see, let us start with the GITMO II that we all condemned harbouring by the NDC. You forgot to state that John Mahama and his idiots collected some 250 million US Dollars to domicile them in our midst. Someone of your hypocritical caliber tried to water down the grievousness of that decision by saying that the NDC government rather took only 250 thousand USD for the purpose. Of course it was a lie. The former amount was rather closer to reality. Now, did you not think that any agreement that the Americans would sign on to would be water tight and binding? Say, now that after having the GITMO II in our midst for two years, it turned out that they were not that terroristic after all, wouldn’t it be wise to keep them and continue to have the cover of a mighty friend? Think about it. Would that be tantamount to hypocrisy as you claim? Mind you, if Akufo-Addo were President at the time, he certainly would not have capitulated to American caprices and financial enticements to host the two in the first place, thus avoiding the ensuing quagmire and the headache of extricating the nation from the binding agreement.

On to the Ameri deal, it is a general practice that a company under investigation is charged for any investigation initiated against it. Maybe you are not conversant with some of the regulations, is it because you are a jargon master of empty barrels? It is normal, and that does not in any way compromise the integrity of the investigation at all. However, what is funny is that you kept mute on certain fiscal atrocities against the nation perpetrated by the erstwhile regime of John Mahama, while the nation was been inextricably straddled with commitments that we continue to pay a heavy price for. Say that the whole Ameri deal did not augur well for the nation, as we all are aware, and the Akufo-Addo administration ironed out those grey areas in order to make it fiscally compliant with our means, would that be hypocrisy? Didn’t you think that by extending the Ameri deal for 20 years, it meant that President Akufo-Addo had ensured that the nation was not shortchanged?

If your empty rant was supposed to be neutral why did you not raise genuine points to discuss the pros and cons? Have you sought information from the Ministry of Energy about the details of the contract extending the Ameri Deal? Again, have you sought to know the details of the February 12, 2015, deal with the Americans to establish a military base as against Akufo-Addo’s agreement of military cooperation rather? You have an appreciable command of the English language, Azure, and I am certain you know the difference between having a military base and a limited military cooperation. Are you not aware that our agreement with the Americans on “Military Cooperation” (unlike NDC’s military base) does not grant them a right to freely roam our country? So if you are talking about confused journalists who needed to be explained to, you definitely are one. Maybe for parochial interests, you know the truth, but seek to display myopism and flowery language in order to camouflage your hypocrisy. Suffice it to say that those of us who know what this government is all about will tell you that this time round, you misfired!

Those of us who know how patriotic and “Ghanaianistic” President Nana Akufo-Addo is will vouch with all their hearts that he is one of a kind, unlike the stomach journalists and insatiably corrupt John Mahama. The other issues of hypocrisy that you want to use as pins on the chair of Akufo-Addo, after the two point explanation discussed above, will become blunt and ineffective. Truth be told, the Military Cooperation with the Americans was extensively discussed and explained on all fora, but you know the cry of donkeys is the ugliest in the animal kingdom, and such cries as yours are becoming just as ugly! As an objective journalist, you need to understand that critiquing government must carry a tone of honesty instead of servitude to the pocket where issues are dampened to have a more balsamic effect for temporary relief. You have always been a campaigner against JOSPONG, how far? Tell us! Maybe you also ought to ask the Special Prosecutor how the Ibrahim Mahama file is shaping up, that is if he has even started. Talk to us as Manasseh Azure and not as a Stomach Journalist!

However, being that a Human is fallible means that we need to constantly watch the steps of those who wield our Power lest they mistakenly trip over obstacles as the hypocrisy that you exhibited in your article. That is why the President has eyes and ears on the ground after all he knows that #TheJobDeyGround

Go back to the drawing board and redefine your moments, Manasseh Azure, but for now #WoabonPapa