Kwasi Pratt defends Woyome’s GH51m fraudulent payment

Kwesi Pratt Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper says it is “sheer irresponsibility” and an “insult” to Ghanaians for any politician to claim that if his party assumes power, they will not honour the payment of judgment debt but will use such monies to fund the cost of education.

In an apparent support for the fleecing of nation’s resources by people who had no contract with the state, Kwesi Pratt said it was not a big deal for people like Woyome to defraud the state even if they had no contract.

Alfred Agbesi Woyome, an NDC bankroller fraudulently pocketed GH¢51.2million with support of government officials when they had no contract.

However, Pratt said it was immoral for political parties to use the fraudulent payments as campaign tools to win votes.

Accusing the New Patriotic Party (NPP) of deliberately keeping the issue of judgment debt alive for purposes of political expediency, Pratt stated that some members of the NPP’s Communication Team have been constantly trumpeting that under Nana Akufo-Addo’s administration, judgment debts would not be paid and that those monies would be used to fund the free Senior High School policy.

According to him, the worrying aspect of the “NPP propaganda”, was that it “does not respect facts and indeed it does not respect the people of Ghana.”

He was of the conviction that such a stance clearly undermined the authority of the courts, pointing out that there was no way the NPP could say that they would not pay judgment debt, if they “claim to believe in the rule of law”.

Moreover, he said, most of these cases of judgment debts were lawful and could not be avoided.

“As far as the NPP is concerned, judgment debt is one of the issues they want to ride on to power. They are deliberately keeping the issue of judgment debt alive. What is worrying about the NPP propaganda is that it does not respect facts and indeed it does not respect the people of Ghana…There are many people in the NPP who have gone out and made the claim that the NPP government will not pay judgment debt and that it will be used to offset the cost of education so that education can be free.

As far as I am concerned, these statements are highly irresponsible and they are not statements expected from people who claim to believe in the rule of law…it is sheer irresponsibility and an insult to the people of Ghana for any politician to mount a podium and claim that if it comes to power, judgment debt will be used for education and will not be paid.

It is irresponsible and it ought to be pointed out clearly,” Kwesi said contributing to panel discussions on Radio Gold’s news analysis programme, ‘Alhaji and Alhaji’.