Just In : Al Jazeera Clarifies Prez Akufo-Addo's " Gold Mafia" Story

The President , Akufo-Addo

Al Jazeera, an international news network based in Qatar, has responded to President Akufo-Addo's inquiry about a recent incriminating allegation it broadcast.

Following the publication of the expose 'Gold Mafia', in which a businessman, Alistair Mathias, claimed to have conducted gold business in Ghana and that President Akufo-Addo was his attorney, the Number One Gentleman denied these allegations.

In a letter to the network, the President Secretary, Nana Asante Bediatuo, demanded an unqualified apology for airing a fictitious documentary about President Nana Akufo-Addo.

A letter sent by Al Jazeera to the local television network, TV3, on May 3 revealed information about the network's response to the president.

Al Jazeera stated, "We have responded to the President's letter to the Republic of Ghana, correcting some of its content and clarifying several points."

The April 25 letter from Nana Bediatuo to Al Jazeera stated, "I am instructed by the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to demand formally that Al Jazeera Media Network (Al Jazeera) retract immediately and apologize for airing an inaccurate and unfair documentary containing false and unsubstantiated allegations against the President and the Government of Ghana."

Al Jazeera stated, "Prior to the publication of Gold Mafia, we outlined the claims made by Alistair Mathews in a letter to the President. Near the conclusion of the documentary, the President's response is shown." Gold Mafia, which aired on television last month, was a journey into the underworld of gold smuggling and money laundering in Zimbabwe.


Journalists posing as Asian criminals and conversing with Alistair Mathias in an effort to launder their ill-gotten gains are depicted in the documentary aspect that has Ghana on the defensive and has been rejected by the President.

Mr. Alistair, who calls himself the financial architect, claims to have a history of orchestrating criminal syndicates and is also portrayed as a person who designs money laundering schemes for numerous corrupt African politicians.

He contends that he has carried out some of these schemes in Ghana.


His claim to be President Akufo-Addo's acquaintance has been vehemently refuted by the Number One Gentleman's Scribe.

"The President of Ghana is my close friend; in fact, he was my attorney," he told the undercover reporters.

Mr. Mathias added that he was once the largest gold smuggler in Ghana, exporting between $40 million and $60 million per month from the West African nation.

His claim to have been involved in contract executions in Ghana has caused widespread concern, as his name does not strike any bells.

Alistair Mathias's cause has not been aided by the President's denial, even though the opposition views the subject as fertile ground for partisan maneuvers.

"In Ghana, I accept bids for road construction, procurement, supplying various items, fuels, etc. There, all the politicians are taken care of, which indirectly enables me to do all my other activities effortlessly," he boasts.

His so-called Mathias Holdings, through which he subcontracts enterprises in Ghana, is virtually unknown.

President Akufo-Addo's claim that he does not recall acting as a counsel for Alistair Mathias or his company has further harmed the project of the so-called financial architect.

As a result of Mr. Mathias's subsequent denial that he was ever awarded a contract by the Ghanaian government or entered into any government contracts in any African nation, many have questioned the purpose of the so-called exposé.