"Partying" Prevented Prez Kufuor Attending VOA Interview

According to the Western regional chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Nana Alex Asamoah, President Kufuor was unable to to appear at the studios of the Voice of America (VOA) for a scheduled interview, because he over indulged himself in merry making that day which eventually compromised his ability to attend the well-advertised interview.

The regional chairman made the "shocking revelation" after the expiration of his three-day ultimatum, asked the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and President Kufuor to apologize to Ghanaians for his inability to appear at the studios of the Voice of America (VOA), as earlier advertised.

Nana Asamoah has also asked President Kufuor to apologize to Ghanaians for the events that led to his failure to attend the advertised interview, and promised Ghanaians that he would not act in the way he acted in the USA, which has actually embarrassed Ghana as a country.

Speaking at the inauguration of the Central Region and Cape Coast constituency youth working committee at Cape Coast last Saturday, Nana Alex Asamoah said ever since he gave the Ministry for Foreign Affairs a three-day ultimatum to explain the reason why the President could not attend the VOA interview, a number of people have said on air that he had no information and that he was out for a mischief.

According to him, whilst the debate went on the presidential spokesman, Mr. Kwabena Agyepong, also called a radio station in Accra from Japan and tried to cover up what actually went on in the USA that led to the President's failure to attend the interview.

Alex Asamoah quoted Kwabena Agyepong as having explained that the meetings the President had with African ambassadors in the USA and President George Bush prevented him from attending the interview.

This, he argued, even contradicted the earlier pronouncement by the host of the programme, Mr. Shaka Saley, that our president had been caught up in traffic, according to information he had received from the Ghanaian officials.

Asamoah further told the over jubilant party supporters, which included Dr. Ato Quashie, Central regional chairman of the party, and the national youth organizer, Haruna Iddrisu, that credible information he has received from sources he did not name debunked the claim that the President met African ambassadors on the day in dispute.

"We have crosschecked and crosschecked but we did not find any evidence that the President met Africa ambassadors as the presidential spokesman was alleging," he claimed.

Asamoah also contended that the meeting the President had with George Bush could not have prevented him from attending the interview because they met for only 180seconds or three minutes.

Apart from this he said there was a three-hour gap between his meeting with Bush, which was even a photo opportunity, and the scheduled time he was to appear at the VOA studios.

Alex Asamoah further told his jubilant audience, who were seemingly happy with his "shocking revelation' that NDC was a big party that has people spread across the globe therefore whatever the President or members of his government do when they traveled outside the country would be caught by the eagle eyes of the party supporters.

Chairman Asamoah about a week and half ago called a news conference in Takoradi where he gave the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, a 48-hour ultimatum to come out and explain the actual reason why President Kufuor could not attend the VOA programme.

He promised that if after the 48-hour ultimatum the ministry still failed to come out, he would go on air to disclose the actual facts he had obtained from what he described as credible sources in the USA.

Nana Alex Asamoah has meanwhile asked ex-President Rawlings never to appear at the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) because a political minefield had been laid there for him. "Our founder should never allow himself as a gladiator or a star witness to appear before the NRC," he added.

According to him, the NRC was set up to destroy ex-President Rawlings and the NDC party he founded but despite all the revelations coming out, his name has kept on soaring.