GYEEDA Report: Mahama Can�t Feign Ignorance About Payments � Ken Kuranchie

The Editor of the Daily Searchlight newspaper, Ken Kuranchie has said President John Mahama cannot deny knowledge about the contracts and approval of funds for the operations of Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Development Agency (GYEEDA). According to him, contracts and payments of that magnitude require Presidential approval and therefore the President cannot claim ignorance about the activities of the managers of GYEEDA. President Mahama has promised to swiftly act on the recommendations of the ministerial committee which he set up to investigate the activities of GYEEDA and the alleged misuse of funds. However, speaking on Citi Fm�s The Big Issue, Mr. Kuranchie asked: �How much does John Mahama know about all these contracts? How much does the President who received the report know about some of these contracts? He cannot claim that he was unaware of some of these contracts that GYEEDA entered into. The President �cannot claim not to know and if he claims not to know, then he should not be the President of this country,� he added. Mr. Kuranchie who is also a member of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) indicated that it is the duty of the President to give personal approval to contracts before they are awarded. �A President who is prepared to impose tax on cutlasses and impose tax on condoms is not aware that contracts are being given and that the state has to pay GHC 15million a month to certain organizations; he cannot claim to be unaware. He has to give personal approval.� On the composition of the committee which was instituted to investigate GYEEDA, Mr. Kuranchie questioned why a Parliamentary committee was rather not instituted to carry out this duty saying, �I wonder why anybody would attempt to look into this matter with a ministerial committee�To set up a ministerial committee or investigation�and for the report to be handed over to the same Mr. John Dramani Mahama, I�m afraid you are taking the meat to the cat for the cat to protect.�