It's good to police Akufo-Addo's travels but cut out the propaganda - Akomea to Ablakwa

Nana Akomea, Managing Director of the state-owned Intercity STC, has advised MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, to cut down on the use of propaganda in seeking accountability on presidential travels.

Akomea holds that Ablakwa's dogged advocacy while admirable seems to be dwelling too much on propaganda citing his recent post on Akufo-Addo's trip to Europe.

The lawmaker earlier this week disclosed

Read full article.that the Presidential jet had been flown to Paris days before Akufo-Addo and his entourage left Accra for the Netherlands, for the first leg of his two-legged Euro trip.

Ablakwa demanded who had flown the jet to France and why the travels could not be merged to save cost.

But in a response, Akomea observed that whiles Akufo-Addo opted for commercial travel via KLM, Ablakwa still claimed that the flight was delayed by the President.

“It is completely needless. People appreciate you for what you are doing about the conversation about the presidential jet. But if you are not careful, you can get carried away.

"If you had just stuck to the questions that he is asking for clarification, no one would have a problem with him. If the man flies on a commercial jet that you have been advocating, you still come here and say that he is probably doing that because the money is finished.

"And even that, you said the president delayed the commercial flight. So you always mix the propaganda and it dilutes and distorts your advocacy in this matter," he stated.

Akomea made the submissions on the September 9 edition of Metro TV's Good Morning Ghana programme. Ablakwa, a co-panellist, defended his stance on the issue stressing it was part of his constitutional duty.

He has since last year reported on the President's use of expensive private jets for travels outside the continent.

Even though the presidency has often defended the use of chartered flights citing the unfit nature of the presidential jet, Ablakwa insists their verdict is wrong, that the jet is in pristine condition and able to make long-haul flights non-stop.

SARA/PEN