Investigative journalist and author Manasseh Azure Awuni has weighed in on comments made by the National Chairman of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, regarding the appointment of Haruna Iddrisu and Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak as ministers in the administration of President John Dramani Mahama.
The controversy emerged after Asiedu Nketiah addressed party supporters in Tamale on Thursday, May 21, during discussions surrounding the restructuring of the NDC’s parliamentary frontbench.
In his remarks, the NDC Chairman indicated that following changes made to the leadership of the caucus in Parliament, he personally recommended Haruna Iddrisu and Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak to President Mahama for ministerial appointments.
Speaking on The Big Issue on Channel One TV on Saturday, May 23, Manasseh Azure Awuni said many people had misunderstood the context of Asiedu Nketiah’s comments after only reading excerpts circulating online.
According to the investigative journalist, his own perspective changed after watching the full video of the NDC Chairman’s address.
“When I read pieces of it on social media, I thought it was something that was very serious but after watching the video, I realised this was someone who was trying to find the right word and there wasn’t any form of malice or intention to denigrate someone if you look at how he said it. Of course, if you are the recipient of that description, you will be offended.”
Awuni further explained that the comments appeared to be an attempt by Asiedu Nketiah to calm lingering tensions within the party following the controversial reshuffle of the Minority leadership in Parliament, an issue that generated significant public and internal party discussions at the time.
“There are many who have not forgiven him for what happened in Parliament and so he thought he would use that opportunity to assuage whatever grievances they still had and try to let them know that it was necessary for the general good.”
Read Also…
Existing laws fail victims of ‘sex-for-jobs’ — Sheila Minkah-Premo
Explore the world of impactful news with CitiNewsroom on WhatsApp!
Click on the link to join the Citi Newsroom channel for curated, meaningful stories tailored just for YOU:
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaCYzPRAYlUPudDDe53x
No spam, just the stories that truly matter! #StayInformed #CitiNewsroom #CNRDigital
