Posted: Daily Guide |Friday, 09 July 2010
By Charles Takyi-Boadu
Government has denied claims by former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings that it had virtually neglected former President Jerry Rawlings after fire destroyed his Ridge residence.
Information Minister John Tia, in a statement issued in Accra yesterday, countered claims by Nana Konadu that little had been done by government to look for an alternative accommodation for her family to live in since the fire incident.
The statement indicated that it was rather the Rawlingses who rejected offers made to them by government, adding “it (government) has done everything within its power to ensure that the former First Family is properly re-settled.”
Mr. Tia said government had been in constant touch with members of the ex-President’s team who had indicated a preference for the reconstruction of the burnt Ridge residence.
The ex-President’s team, led by Herbert Mensah, a close confidant, indicated the Rawlingses’ preference for a rented facility for the period of reconstruction of the gutted house when they rejected the initial offers.
Government, Mr Tia said, had been “awaiting indication of their preferred premises.”
He said “the rent for the said premises will be borne by government”.
In the light of this, government has stressed its commitment towards ex-Presidents of the country, though the issue of former President John Kufuor remains unresolved.
Far from what Nana Konadu was reported to have said on Joy FM, the Information Minister insisted “government has taken the necessary steps to ensure that this is done and is awaiting certain information from the ex-President’s team to be able to conclude arrangements to ensure that reconstruction work commences.”
The former First Lady had said she had been compelled by circumstances to “perch” with her mother whilst her sweetheart shuttles between Tefle in the Volta Region and Accra, a situation she said was not good for a couple.
But Mr. Herbert Mensah, who has been having discussions with the Office of the Chief of the Staff on behalf of the former first family, has denied that Nana Konadu had accused government of neglect, saying she was taken out of context.
He told DAILY GUIDE yesterday that it was not only inaccurate but also offensive and misleading for James Agyenim-Boateng, a deputy Minister of Information, to create the impression that the Rawlingses were offered an accommodation but turned it down.
Mr Agyenim-Boateng had said that the former first couple had rejected three places that had been shown to them, with the explanation that they wanted to rebuild the gutted house.
“Indeed we have tried to provide the former First Family with accommodation that is befitting, that can reasonably guarantee their safety and security pending renovation works on their Ridge residence which [got] burnt down.”
He said they were first offered a residence at the AU Village, which is “pretty close to their burnt residence” as a holding place for them but they “turned down” the offer.
The residence of the former National Security Co-ordinator, Francis Poku, was refurbished to befit their status but that was also rejected.
"We felt that it was reasonably safe and secure for holding a former president and his spouse. The place was prepared to befit their status in terms of their safety and their security.
Again, the former President did like the place but the former First Lady did not like the place, based on that, it was turned down," the Deputy Minister said.
According to Mr. Agyenim-Boateng, the Rawlingses said they wanted to select their own contractor, do their own design and supervise the project themselves even though the cost would be borne by the State.
Considering the fact that the AU Village has been a subject of a raging controversy, Mr. Mensah asked rhetorically, “Would it not be a bit stupid for President Rawlings to go and stay in that place when you say you want to go and charge the people?”
Aside that, he said “you see how open it is, if somebody even wants to shoot you from somewhere, they have no high walls in terms of security. So it is not like you are offering a sensible alternative.”
On Francis Poku’s house, Mr. Mensah indicated that it was the former President himself who said it was inappropriate since it raised a lot of security-minded issues, considering its location and the nature of the previous occupant.
“Not at any point in time did President Rawlings say that he was happy to stay there and she (Nana Konadu) was the one who said she was not happy to stay there,” he stated.
When Nana Konadu appeared on that Joy FM programme to tell Ghanaians and supporters of the ruling government as to whether or not the 2008 Presidential Candidate of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo would pose a threat to the chances of the NDC if he was elected to lead the party for the 2012 general elections, she declined to comment.
The former First Lady parried the question and said she preferred to focus on the 31st December Women’s Movement, an NGO she formed, the difficulty women and children go through and the negative effects of the Internet on children.
“Let’s talk about positive things,” she added.
That notwithstanding, she said the NDC had pretty good chances at the 2012 elections if it tackled the issues that went wrong during the eight years of the NPP in power.
For her, the future was bright, not necessarily because of what the NDC government had done or might be doing but by just looking at the supposed rot that engulfed the country during the NPP era.
Nana Konadu said the NPP totally impoverished Ghanaians.
“I believe the issues that we (31st December Women’s Movement) fought for are still relevant. We have to look at what went wrong and see what can be done right,” she said.