The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, in its attempt to refute an allegation made by Captain Smart on Onua TV about NAM1’s passport status lost the plot by releasing a public relations faux pas in the form of a press release.
There is a difference between a report and a claim, and the ministry confused the two by discrediting GhanaWeb’s reportage with its accompanying video showing the claims made by Media General broadcast journalist, Blessed Godsbrain Smart, popularly known as Captain Smart.
The journalist alleged that the controversial Chief Executive Officer of Menzgold Ghana Limited, Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1) was never going to pay up the money he owes customers of his collapsed company because “he is being protected by people in high places”... and he is so protected “that he carries a service passport.”
“NAM1 will never be jailed. He is not going to be imprisoned for even three days. NAM1 is enjoying whatever he is enjoying. NAM1 is protected. EOCO is saying there are not enough laws in Ghana to take NAM1 to court. So, how did the Bank of Ghana close down MenzGold,” Captain Smart alleged in Twi.
GhanaWeb, being the most dependable reference point for millions of online content consumers including state and security institutions, and researchers among others, only objectively reported what Captain Smart had shared on his programme without any subjectivity as expected of any responsible media.
Less than 24 hours after GhanaWeb’s report, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided to publish tweets calling GhanaWeb’s report as “blatantly false” without mentioning the broadcast journalist and his media channel. A clear case of undermining and attacking the “messenger” that serves the Ministry and millions of other Ghanaians with information across multiple platforms.
Without the report by GhanaWeb, how would the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration know about the allegation made by Captain Smart which has already been consumed by the public on TV? The ministry’s public relations team has to face its fear of Captain Smart’s probe of its response by addressing him and not GhanaWeb which objectively reported the journalist’s allegations.
