'Akufo-Addo is not on WhatsApp' - Eugene Arhin claims

According to him, the President does not also send text messages to also demand the dismissal of people in their work establishment.

Eugene Arhin was reacting to a GhanaWeb publication where a former staff of Accra-based Kingdom FM, Gh Mouthpiece, alleged that the President instructed her bosses to dismiss her from the media establishment.

Quoting parts of the reportage on his Facebook timeline, Arhin debunked the claims by the former Kingdom FM presenter and stated categorically that President Akufo-Addo will not stoop so low as to demand her dismissal.

He noted that the CEO of Kingdom FM also denied the allegations levelled against him by his former staff and advised the former radio presenter not to capitalise on the President's name to trend.

"I have seen a story on Ghanaweb where a radio presenter, referred to as “Gh Mouthpiece”, claims she was dismissed from Kingdom FM on the orders of President Akufo-Addo. For the avoidance of doubt, this is nothing but a fabricated, baseless lie, simple as that.

"According to her, 'the President could not sleep throughout the night, and had texted him (Jonathan Amofah) at 1:00 am. He (President Akufo-Addo) sent him the video I had recorded. My Director told me he was under pressure because of my video'.

"Anyone who knows President Akufo-Addo knows that he is not on Whatsapp, neither does he send text messages to anyone, let alone stoop so low as to demand that a journalist be dismissed from her employment," Eugene Arhin wrote.

He added, "indeed, I have spoken to the CEO of Kingdom FM, Jonathan Kwame Amofah, who has stated categorically that he has never received a text message from the President before, has never received any directive from the President to dismiss anyone, and goes on to describe "Gh Mouthpiece" as peddling nothing but falsehoods.

"If this “journalist” wants to trend, she is free to do so, but she should be guided by the ethics of journalism, which are truth, accuracy and objectivity. As the President has always said, he prefers, on any day, the noisy, boisterous, sometimes scurrilous media of today to the monotonous, praise-singing, sycophantic one of yesteryear. He will not be the one to ask for the dismissal of a journalist who criticizes him."

What Gh Mouthpiece actually said:

A former radio presenter at Kingdom FM, known as Gh Mouthpiece, has alleged that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo pressured her director to sack her over comments made against his government and economic hardship under his leadership.

Speaking on Accra-based Neat FM, Gh Mouthpiece said, "I just reminded the president of his statement 'we are blessed with resources but the citizens are suffering'. That was my offence...I said that Ghana has become worse under his leadership. I said Nana fix the country. That was all, I didn't insult anybody but I got dismissed.

"I said fix it because we are suffering...I didn't make those statements on the radio. I recorded it on my phone and shared it on my Instagram page. I did it as a citizen of Ghana, I am not a spectator. We have rights and freedom of speech...I was sacked from work because I had expressed myself. I didn't use the radio station's platform or record the video on their premises."

She continued: "I was playing drive...I had reported to work, done my introduction and even dropped my motivational message. 15 minutes into the show, I saw our manager had opened the door signalling me to come. I was confused because I was seated behind the console and speaking live. My producer told me that our Director had asked for me. Honestly, I become scared.

"When I got to his office, I wanted to sit but he told me to stand. He asked what happened yesterday, he showed me the video I had made together with the president's chat and asked 'what is this?'. The chart was with Ghana's sitting president, Nana Addo.

"The president had sent my video to my director. I told my director that I was part of the 'Fix The Country' campaign. I was just expressing my opinion...my directed said I exposed the company I am working for. He said I claimed our salary can't cater for our transportation...I defended myself and made it clear that my statement was the true state of the nation, the voices of Ghanaians.”

"He said 'akora', that is the president, could not sleep throughout the night and had texted him at 1:00 am. He sent him the video I had recorded. My director told me that he was under pressure because of my video...I respect my director so much, he moved me to the main station...he is someone who has supported my career, so when he said the was under pressure to remove me, I understood him...he had every right to stop me from going live that morning but he didn't. I think people called him to complain after hearing my voice on radio that morning, the reason he took me off," she stressed.

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