The 2012 Presidential candidate of the opposition People’s National Convention, PNC, Mr. Hassan Ayariga, has denied ever receiving any offer from the Government of Ghana to lift crude oil from the Jubilee fields.

A member of the main opposition New Patriotic Party’s Communication team, Hopeson Adoryeh, recently made the claim when he spoke on private radio station, Oman FM.

Mr. Adoryeh said he was reliably informed that the governing National Democratic Congress had awarded Mr. Ayariga a valid license to lift crude in the country.

He nonetheless said he had no qualms with such a contract provided Mr. Ayariga had the right expertise to do such business.

He however said he believed the PNC Presidential Candidate got the favour through cronyism.

According to Mr. Adoryeh, Mr. Ayariga’s subtle jabs at the NPP’s Presidential Candidate, Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo during the 2012 Presidential debates organised by the Institute for Economic Affiars, IEA, amongst other unsavoury comments he passed against the NPP, are what have won him the oil contract.

Mr. Ayariga however told XYZ News in an interview that: “I haven’t heard of it; I think this is the first time I’m hearing of it…I think that if I‘ve been given an offer, the media will be the first people to hear because I will have to have a press conference to thank the Government of Ghana for giving me that power or authority”.

He expressed qualms about political opponents using the media to peddle what he described as false allegations about other people without any verification.