Akufo-Addo didn’t sneak out to South Africa; he informed Parliament – Oppong-Nkrumah

Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has debunked claims that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo attended the just ended Global Citizen Concert in South Africa without giving prior notice to Parliament.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah insists a correspondence from the Presidency detailing the official invitation from South African President, H. E. Cyril Ramaphosa to the Global Citizen Concert was

Read full articlesent to the Speaker of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye.

“I write to inform you that I will be travelling outside the country in the morning of Saturday, 1st December, 2018 to Johannesburg, South Africa to honour an invitation extended to me by H. E. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the Republic of South Africa to participate in the 2018 Global Citizen Festival in commemoration of the 100th year anniversary of Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa, global statesman and icon, to be held on 2nd of December, 2018,” the Minister read out parts of the letter sent to Parliament by the Presidency.

Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi recently took a swipe at President Akufo-Addo for “secretly and unceremoniously” attending the Global Citizen Concert held in South Africa’s capital, Johannesburg with his relatives.

Mr. Gyamfi in a statement, accused the President of failing to “inform Parliament about this trip contrary to the Constitutional imperative to do so whenever the President intends to leave our jurisdiction.”

However, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah has advised Ghanaians to ignore such claims as the President informed the Legislature ahead of his departure to South Africa.

“This social media speculation that you are hearing that the President sneaked out of the country and did not inform Parliament, I am sure when you read the correspondence you can put it in context,” he maintained.