Energy Minister Jumps Gun To Deny Dashing Asantehene US$3million

Ahead of a story that Accra-based The Herald newspaper has advertised to publish for its readership, Energy Minister, Mathew Opoku Prempeh is demanding that the paper abort the story and retract the appetizer.

In a legal threat from his lawyers, Sarkodie Baffour Awuah & Partners, the Energy Minister, popularly called Napo, claims that the story which has not yet been published is malicious.

“Take notice and notice is hereby served that we have the firm instructions of our client to institute legal proceedings against you if we deem same necessary without recourse to you, should you fail to retract the said publication and desist from publishing further untruthful contents about our client,” the wolves at Baffour Awuah and Partners Legal Consult served.

The alacrity with which Napo is threatening the Herald with a lawsuit in court over a story that is yet to be released is a reflection of the now-acclaimed dictatorial clampdown on press freedom and free speech by the Akufo Addo administration.

According to a teaser by The Herald, the upcoming story is about Napo, who is also the NPP MP for Manhyia South in the Ashanti Region, giving some US$3million to the Asantehene.

The teaser read thus: “coming up! Napo gives US$3million to Otumfuo.”

But according to Napo, even though Otumfuo has made immeasurable contributions to society and that he would love very much to assist him in any way possible, he does not have that kind of money to throw at the Overlord of Ashanti.

“… the said publication is not only untrue but mischievous and part of a scheme to incessantly publish untruths about our client for reasons known to you,” the lawyer from his lawyers said.

Incidentally, the story has not been published yet.