Freelance Journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni has rebuked former President Mahama over his defense of the article he shared on social media which the President of the Republic of Ghana deemed derogatory against the tribe he belongs.
The freelance Journalist who is known for his fierce and fearless criticism of government officials admonished the former president to stop defending his actions. In his view, Mr. Mahama’s defense of the said post and his sharing of same is “weak and irrational equalization”.
According to him, the sharing of the article on social media which has tribal bearing is inappropriate adding that the former president should have been circumspect in his criticism of the government on social media because of his standing in society.
In his opinion, describing the actors in the Agyapa deal in the manner in which they were referred to in the said post even without the tribal tag is improper hence the former president’s defense that the post is not a description of the Akyems but those involved in the deal is unacceptable.
“Mr. John Mahama should stop his weak defense and irrational equalization. He should have exercised better discretion. It was wrong to share an article with that heading. Even if you take out the “Akyem” from the heading of the article he shared, it’s still wrong to refer to those involved in the Agyapa deal as “sakawa boys”. He can be critical without descending that low because of who he is,” he stated.
The multiple award winning Journalist also took on the author of the said article which the former president shared. He opined that the author, Isaac Adongo who is MP for Bolgatanga Central could have criticized the government without being ethnocentric. He asserted that it was improper of the author to drag an ethnic grouping in his article in view of the fact that not all who belong to the ethnic group approve of the deal.
“The author of the article, Isaac Adongo, could have talked about nepotism without bringing in the name of an ethnic group because not all Akyems approve of or are beneficiaries of the Agyapa deal,” he added.
Former president Mahama in an interview on Woezor TV on Saturday, September 5, 2020 rejected claims by president Akufo-Addo that an article authored by MP for Bolgatanga Central, Isaac Adongo which Mr. Mahama shared on social media is a propagation of ethnocentric comments.
Mr. Mahama argued that the article and its content was in reference to only government officials of the said ethnic grouping and not the entire people of ethnic group. He also chided the president following president’s outrage over the article and former president Mahama sharing of same stating that the president is known for such unsavory language and therefore has no moral right to be enraged over such comments.
