President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has demanded an immediate retraction and apology for a documentary titled “Gold Mafia” aired by Al Jazeera.
According to a letter signed by the Executive Secretary to the President, Nana Bediatuo Asante, to Al Jazeera, portions of the documentary peddled untruths about the Ghanaian President.
Nana Bediatuo Asante in the letter argued that parts of the documentary that indicted Akufo-Addo were malicious, defamatory, and a calculated attempt to tarnish the reputation of the President of Ghana.
“It is imperative that you act forthwith on this request within seven (7) days from the date of receipt of this letter,” the president demanded in a letter his Secretary, Nana Bediatuo Asante, wrote to the media organisation.
The presidency denied Akufo-Addo’s involvement in any of the allegations that were made in the Gold Mafia documentary released a few weeks ago.
In an undercover investigative documentary by Al Jazeera, Alistair Mathias was caught on tape bragging about his connections in Ghana and how he operates his money laundering syndicate.
Mathias revealed that he had executed similar schemes in Ghana and claimed to be good friends with its President, whom he also said used to be his lawyer.
“In Ghana, I take tenders, road construction, procurement, supplying different things, oil, this that. There, all the politicians get taken care of, indirectly because it allows me to do all my other stuff freely.”
“For example, Ghana government, I get the contract. I subcontract it to you, $100 million contract. Ghana government pays me $100 million. I give it to you, and you say it’s $80 million.”
“In this scenario, the outstanding $20 million out of the inflated $100 million is shared per an arrangement reached between Alistair and the said politician,” he added.
“I’ll have an arrangement with them, and they get 15… I’ll probably get 5 million. I keep all of it in Dubai. Whenever they want it, they just tell me and I send it.”
“Ghana’s President is a good friend of mine, in fact, he was my lawyer,” he said.
He explained that the politicians involved do not keep assets in their own names but rely on proxies, with Mathias taking tenders, road construction, procurement, and supplying different things.
Pulse
