I’ve never called Bawumia ‘useless’ – Matthew Opoku Prempeh

Energy Minister, Matthew Opoku Prempeh has refuted media reports accusing him of describing Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as “useless”.

The Minister, in a statement, reacted to a viral video captioned “Bawumia’s Running Mate says Bawumia is Useless” in which he expressed his views on Ghana’s economy.

The Minister is urging the general public to disregard the video, stating it is a malicious ploy by his poltical enemies to tarnish his image.

Setting the record straight, Hon. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who doubles as Member for Parliament for Manhyia South, revealed the said interview by him on the video was done in February, 2014 and it was in reference to the State of the Nation Address by Ex-President John Dramani Mahama “where he blamed the country’s economic woes on external shocks. In fact, at that time, the Cedi was rated as the worst performing currency in the world”.

“Dr. Prempeh’s view was that, the then President’s assertion was inaccurate and had no basis in truth because, the fall of the cedi was largely due to fiscal irresponsibility on the part of the government and not external shocks,” the statement signed by his aide, Kofi Abrefa Afena, clarified.

The Minister therefore finds it “unfathomable, how any reasonable person, after listening to this straight-forward interview, would nonetheless conclude that Dr. Prempeh was referring to His Excellency the Vice President”.

“Indeed, in the said clip, Dr. Prempeh kept referring to “the President” and so that cannot possibly be in reference Dr. Bawumia, who has never served as President of the republic”, Hon. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, popularly called ‘NAPO’, established.

He believes “these are, once again, Machiavellian attempts” by his political detractors “intra and inter, to cause disaffection for him”.