Ablakwa Threatens Fellow Ɔdadeɛ With Demo

Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa continues to be on the heels of his former Senior High School (SHS) mate and now Minister for Food and Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong.

The former Deputy Education Minister, has served notice of an impending demonstration against the sale of some six hotels belonging to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNT) to Rock City Hotel Limited, owned by Mr Acheampong.

A letter from Mr Ablakwa, to the Greater Accra Regional Police Command dated, May 23, addressed to the Command, said the demonstration would be staged on June 18, 2024.

The six hotels include; La Beach Hotel, La Palm Royal Beach Resort, Elmina Beach Resort, Ridge Royal Hotel, Busua Beach Resort, and Trust Lodge Hotel.

The protest march, which will commence from the La Beach Hotel all the way to the Jubilee House where a petition will be presented to the President, Nana Akuo-Addo.

According to the North Tongu MP, the demonstration has become necessary after calls to stop the sale of the hotels, have fallen on deaf ears.

He said the protest next month, is one of the many actions they intend to use to ensure government put a stop to the deal.

“Pursuant to the Public Order Act, 1994 (Act 491), this serves as formal notice to your outfit that a considerable number of Ghanaians from all walks of life intend to demonstrate against the unconscionable sale of SSNIT’s 60% stake in its hotels to Rock City owned by current Minister for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Bryan Acheampong.

The demonstration will commence in front of the Labadi Beach Hotel, proceed through La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, and is expected to end at the Jubilee House, where we shall present a petition to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo”, the letter said.

Earlier in an interview on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show (SMS), Mr Acheampong, who is also MP for Abetifi constituency, expressed surprise at the way his colleague and school mate from the Presbyterian Boys Senior High School (PRESEC), Legon was going about with the matter in the media.

The minister, who was on the show with Mr Ablakwa, had indicated how it would have been better if his accuser had contacted him privately, to explain things to him as a friend of many years from school, instead of going public.

Mr Acheampong, who expressed his readiness to answer all questions posed by his colleague, denied any wrongdoing in the transaction, adding that all this will not have happened, if his colleague sought his position privately.

But North Tongu MP, indicated that, he did not see the Minister privately, because the matter was a sensitive national issue that needed the attention of all Ghanaians.

He said, his stance on the matter has nothing to do with Mr Acheampong in person, but his conviction that, government officials should not be allowed to purchase state assets, citing conflict of interest issues.

In the course of the interview, he announced that he is currently working on a private member’s bill to stop politicians in the future from acquiring state assets.

Mr Ablakwa, aside making the issue public, has also petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate the matter.

He said, despite the opposition from labour and others to stop the 60 percent sale of the hotels, the process is on-going reason they are embarking on the protest for President Akufo-Addo to intervene.

“As you are aware, it has been a week since I drew the nation’s attention to scandalous and unpatriotic efforts to sell SSNIT’s hotels to Rock City. I promptly filed a complaint at the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on Friday, May 17, 2024.

Regrettably, despite the national outrage, unambiguous demands from Organized Labour and Civil Society Organizations that the sale be stopped, the Akufo-Addo/ Bawumia government has refused to listen to the overwhelming majority of Ghanaians who have loudly condemned this sale.

Considering that the deal is about to be finalized, and noting that the Agric Minister has been offering strange public justifications for his conduct, which reveal that government intends to continue with this putrefying arrangement albeit with impunity, in these circumstances, as citizens, we are compelled to enter the next phase of our national resistance”, Mr Ablakwa added.

Source: Anchorghana.com