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Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Asokwa, Maxwell Kofi Jumah believes the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu�s bribery allegation gained much publicity due to the unfortunate responses from the Manhyia Palace. According to him, the statement signed by 15 sub-chiefs acting on behalf of the Asantehene at the Manhyia Palace led to the story gaining more media attention than necessary after Kumasi-based Kessben FM had reviewed the publication. The bribery slur allegation was first published by the New Free Press online, but went almost unnoticed, until Kessben FM re-broadcast it on the station�s morning newspaper review show. The publication alleged that the Ashanti King brokered a bribery deal between President John Mahama and two of the nine Justices that sat on the historic election petition case. It claimed two Justices were given a whooping amount of money each to sway their vote in favour of President Mahama in the election petition final verdict. This caused the Manhyia Palace to release a statement saying the Asantehene was �disgusted by the writer�s false and malicious allegation of the Asantehene�s complicity in the whole article and the subsequent comments thereof from individuals which can best be described as reprehensible and insulting�. But the former Kumasi Mayor on Asempa FM, who also described the bribery accusation as �wicked�, opined that the Manhyia Palace approach to the allegation which was generated online was ill-fated. �If someone goes to a radio station to accuse someone of doing something wrong, even if it�s not truth, it deserves a response. But if the allegation is made on the internet and you have the high office of Otumfuo responding to it, then I am much more concerned about that and worried. ��The issue would have died down completely if they (Manhyia Palace) ignored it. Not every publication on the internet deserves responses. I am not privy to what the radio station said but what made the publication an issue was when two macho men walked into Kessben FM�s studio to attack journalists in the name of Otumfuo. The Manhyia Palace did not distance itself from the attack, and that is my worry and I don�t like it,� he lamented. However, the outspoken Kofi Jumah expressed disappointment at the decision by the management of the radio station to suspend three of its journalists who reviewed the alleged publication on the station�s morning show. �Don�t let us create an impression that, one can fabricate and tarnish President Mahama�s image but that cannot be done to Otumfuo. As loyal as I am to Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, if we continue to create that impression, then I think all is not well in this country,� he said.