S.A. Commissioner gaffe: 'A good president would've acted in 24hours' - Spio-Garbrah

Presidential hopeful Ekwow Spio-Garbrah has said a good president would have taken disciplinary action against Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, George Ayisi-Boateng for saying his topmost priority as the country’s top diplomat in that country is to see to the welfare of members of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) before any other Ghanaians since “some Ghanaians are more Ghanaian than others.”

“This is the kind of thing that within 24 hours, a good president will come out and take an action for people to know that: ‘yes this man is really defending the people of Ghana,’” Mr Spio-Garbrah said on Wednesday, 1 November.

According to him, when President Nana Akufo-Addo swore the oath of office at the Independence Square, “you swear an oath to defendant the people of Ghana not NPP or NDC.”

Mr Ayisi-Boateng made the comment when he spoke at a ceremony to usher in fresh students of Kumasi Technical University into the Tertiary Students Confederacy Network (TESCON) of the governing New Patriotic Party on Sunday, October 29, 2017 in Kumasi.

“This government is doing its best to create job opportunities and me for instance, I told my people over there [that] it is because of NPP that I’m here so the NPP man is my priority. I told them when NDC was in power it was Kwesi Ahwoi who was there, now we are in power, so Ayisi-Boateng is here with you. My topmost priority is the problems of an NPP person before any other Ghanaian, take it or leave it,” he stated.

“Indeed I’m not boasting but I’ve started meeting the NPP groups. Every weekend I meet some group members and I tell you if I had my way, every job opportunity that will come will go to a TESCON member before any other person. And I know my colleague appointees also have the same feeling except that because of IMF we cannot do anything now…,” he added.

The Minority in Parliament, as well as civil society groups such as OccupyGhana and the Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa, are calling for Mr Ayisi-Boateng’s resignation.

He is, however, unrepentant about the comment.