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Opinions of Tuesday, 7 February 2012

Columnist: Ayeboafo, Yaw Awuah Boadu

Re: Woyome scandal has shot up Mills’ integrity- Anyidoho

Indeed, over the last 30years Ghanaians have been made to understand integrity, probity and transparency according to the thesis of the P/NDC. No wonder, President Mills’ communication director believes his boss’ integrity is enhanced with the unfolding Woyome scandal.

It’s interesting the President and his team have suddenly found their voices with the calculated EOCO investigation. Instead for them to eat their humble pie given their complexities and negligence that paved the way for them to dole billions of cedis to Woyome under the excuse of a default judgment, have rather started patting themselves.

If the President and his cohorts adhere to the principles and tenets of integrity which has the ordinary meaning as understood everywhere the president would have been utterly embarrassed for his seemingly negligence which allowed the deal to succeed with no defence.

The integrity of this president by the standards of good governance and principles has longed been eroded and the quicker they address it the better. The strategy to mend the president’s dented reputation by exploiting Woyomegate is however hypocritical given the sequence of events.

Woyome in his own words and the president’s major source of information, EOCO, there’s no contract. However Woyome “riding on the negligence (and/or complexity) of public officials managed to receive money which he was clearly not entitled to.”

The president and his spokespersons seem confused regarding where to fix his knowledge. If indeed, the president knew of the issues and tried to stop it on two occasions as being bandied about, why did he commission EOCO? If the president accepts the complexity and negligence of his appointees, then at what point did he realise it and what did he seek do about it? The attempt to take president Mills out of Woyomegate cannot stand, let alone shoving his integrity up in the estimation of any serious minded person. The arrest of Woyome, given the knowledge of the president in the series of flaws culminating to the payment all this while makes it unconscionable to celebrate since he had been a free man for far too long. It’s appropriate he’s facing justice now. However, he is being used as a sacrificial lamb in a plot that was planned and executed with all its flaws caring less whether it became public or not.

Its grave insult to the intelligence of the Ghanaian, for the President to think the scandal has boosted his integrity. If they care to know they should check a poll on http://polls.myjoyonline.com/tgpolls/archives_view.php?pollid=44 where a whopping 70.89% of respondents believe the president has not handled the Woyomegate scandal well as of 9.02pm on the 6th of February 2012, earlier Ayidoho had been on radio saying it has rather shot the president’s integrity up. You see the difference between how the NDC understands integrity with even this simple poll?

Do Ghanaians recall the allegation of Mr. Herbert Mensah? Let the president whose integrity has shot up given Woyomegate come out and tell us? The outcome of his promise on Asempa FM to investigate the allegation made against him of siphoning over 900billion cedis of state resources into his campaign to be the NDC’s flag bearer against Nana Konadu recently?

The answer to the question whether the president’s integrity is shot up or bruised will be left to the Ghanaian as he continues to desperately put up brave face in the midst of a well-planned scandal which has finally gone bad.

Yaw Awuah Boadu Ayeboafo aayeboafo@hotmail.com Tepa-Ashanti