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Claim: Multiple reports say ex-Ghanaian president John Mahama has praised the country’s governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) for implementing “a lot of good initiatives” that he would continue if re-elected.
Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s investigations showed that the ex-Ghanaian leader, John Mahama, did not commend the NPP led by President Nana Akufo-Addo, as alleged. The Director of Election and ICT of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Edward Boamah, told DUBAWA the claim is “false.”
Full-Text:
Multiple sources have said that John Dramani Mahama, the 2024 Presidential candidate of Ghana’s opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), has commended President Nana Akufo-Addo’s government for implementing “a lot of good initiatives” that he will continue if re-elected.
The ex-Ghanaian leader has been touring the country to encourage voters to return him to the presidency after he served only one term from 2012 to 2016.
Mr Mahama has been critical of how President Nana Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia have managed the Ghanaian economy. If he wins the presidential poll, he promises to “reset” the country in 2025.
“An obviously clueless, incompetent & ‘yenkyendi’ [let’s share] government. Today, the $ [dollar] is trading above 15 GHC. I promise Ghanaians, I will RESET and repair the damage to the Ghanaian economy,” the ex-Ghanaian leader posted on X (formerly Twitter) on June 5, 2024.
Read news reports about Mr Mahama’s criticism of his successor here and here.
Mr Akufo-Addo launched a project dubbed Agenda 111 on Aug. 17, 2021, to construct 111 district and regional hospitals to improve access to health and health-related services in the country in what has been termed “Agenda 111.”
The Presidential Advisor on Health, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare, disclosed in Apr. 2024 that 50 per cent of the “Agenda 111” hospitals will be completed by the end of 2024.
“We are confident that we may be able to finish about 50 plus of them this year. What is left for us to do is the finishing touches on some of them. As I am speaking today, equipment procurement evaluation is ongoing. So far, so good,” Mr Nsiah Asare said.
However, the ex-Ghanaian president, John Mahama, reportedly said he would continue the project if he wins the 2024 presidential election.
“NPP has implemented a lot of good initiatives that I will continue, like Agenda 111,” the ex-Ghanaian president reportedly said.
A screenshot of the flyer purportedly designed by Accra-based Joy News
The claim is on two flyers purportedly designed by Accra-based media outlet Joy News and online news portal YEN Ghana.
DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim as part of its campaign against misinformation and disinformation in West African countries.
Verification
DUBAWA’s probe showed the 2024 flagbearer of Ghana’s opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama, did not praise the country’s governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) for implementing “a lot of good initiatives” as alleged.
The NDC Director of Election and ICT, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, told DUBAWA the claim is “false.”
Mr Boamah shared with DUBAWA a copy of the flyer, which features the news portal YEN Ghana’s logo and the word “FAKE” embossed across it.
Also, Beatrice Annan, the Deputy spokesperson of Mr Mahama’s 2024 campaign, described the claim as “false and fake.”
A screenshot of the flyer Dr Omane Boamah sent to DUBAWA
DUBAWA later contacted Evans Mensah, the Head of the Political Desk at the Multimedia Group Limited, owners of Joy News, to determine if they designed the flyer.
Mr Mensah told DUBAWA that the media outlet had not created the flyer as purported. “Does not look like one from us,” the journalist said.
Another employee of the Multimedia Group Limited, Kwaku Kyei, confirmed to DUBAWA that the media outlet did not design the flyer.
Similarly, DUBAWA’s Google keyword search revealed that no reputable media organisation in the West African country reported on the alleged claim.
Although there is no evidence to support the claim that the opposition flagbearer has praised the current government for implementing “a lot of good initiatives,” Mr Mahama is on record saying that he will complete “Agenda 111” hospitals to create jobs for Ghanaians.
“…I make you a commitment when I come, the hospitals we were building that have been abandoned by this government, we will continue them. When I come to the Agenda 111 hospitals they are building, I will continue and finish them so that we can create more space to be able to absorb all of you when you finish school. This election is between Ghana and NPP,” the ex-Ghanaian leader told a group of nurses on his campaign tour.
News reports on Mr Mahama’s promise to complete all “Agenda 111” hospitals are available here, here, and here.
Conclusion
While the ex-Ghanaian leader, Mr Mahama, promised to complete the “Agenda 111” hospitals, he did not commend the country’s governing NPP for having “implemented a lot of good initiatives,” as alleged.
