Former President of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings,
yesterday refuted media reports quoting him as attacking the President Goodluck
Jonathan government over Nigeria leadership’s failure to punish politicians who
steal public funds.
Rawlings had, at a conference in Transcorp
Hilton Hotel, Abuja on June 17, 2013, delivered a
key note address on emerging democracies in Africa, in which he defined
democracies as “countries with governments that have emanated out of a
perceived legitimate democratic electoral process but are still saddled with complexities
of dominant political parties and poorly applied rule of law.”
But in a statement by a media director in the
office of the former Ghanian President and Captain of Ghana Navy, H.
Afeku-Amenyo (rtd), Rawling argued that the first three paragraphs of the said
report by an online newspaper paper were complete fabrications.
“Paragraph ten and twelve are distortions of
what President Rawlings said. Because of the gross distortions and falsehoods,
the entire report does portray a totally different representation of the fact
as took place at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja on June 17”, he added.
In spurning the online report, the statement
made available to LEADERSHIP yesterday noted: “We wish to state strongly that
the report is laced with irresponsible falsehoods, fabricated quotations and
wrong allusions that bring the image of His Excellency Jerry John Rawlings into
disrepute.
“President Rawlings did deliver the keynote
address on Emerging Democracies in Africa: Challenges and Opportunities, at
conference organised by the National Institute for Legislative Studies in Abuja
on Monday, June 17, 2013.
“His address did not make reference to the
government of Nigeria and he made no scathing attack on the Nigeria government
as reported. President Rawlings also did not make reference to the Nigeria
leadership’s failure to punish politicians who steal public funds. The first
three paragraphs of the report are complete fabrications.”
The statement attached with the full text of
Rawlings speech in the event at Transcorp Hilton warned the media against any
future distortions, saying “we have taken a very serious view of the
publication because it is malicious, libellous and a very negative piece of
journalism, which is calculated to bring the image of President Rawlings into
disrepute and written to demand a retraction of the publication.
“We caution other media who have inadvertently
republished the said article to note that they will be held equally liable
should we decide to take legal action on the matter”.
Source:
Leadership
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