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General News of Friday, 26 July 2013

Source: Joy Online

JJ backs calls for AMA to apologise to Madam Okoh

Deputy Minister for Energy and Petroleum, John Jinapor, has backed calls for Accra Mayor, Alfred Oko Vanderpuije, to apologise to Madam Theodosia Okoh for attempting to scrap her name from the national hockey stadium.

According to the former spokesperson for President Mahama, although the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) boss tried to honour the memory of late President Mills in trying to swap Madam Okoh's name with Prof Mills', he went about it wrongly.

He said the noble thing which Mr Vanderpuije must do is to swallow his pride and render an unqualified apology to the 91-year-old woman, who designed the Ghana national flag.

John Jinapor was speaking on Peace FM's Kokrokoo Friday July 26.

Former MP for Adentan Constituency, Kojo Adu-Asare, has also demanded that the AMA boss apologises to Madam Theodosia Okoh after the AMA boss' decision backfired.

The mayor announced that "Thoedosia Okoh Hockey Stadium" would be known as “John Evans Atta Mills Hockey Stadium”, but the hockey pitch would be named after the woman - Theodosia Okoh.

91-year-old Madam Okoh, who was also instrumental in developing hockey in the country expressed unhappiness at the mayor's attempt to take off her name from the monument she calls "my hockey pitch".

But after fierce public condemnation, the president directed the AMA to halt the re-naming and summoned Dr Vanderpuije to appear before him.

John Jinapor further cautioned the mayor against similar decisions in the future.

He said Mr Vanderpuije must remember that he is accountable to a higher authority, and hence must not take unilateral decisions about sensitive issues.