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ENOUGH OF THESE RECKLESS, BASELESS AND UNFOUNDED ALLEGATIONS!
It is always important to control our tempers and emotions at all times even in the midst of provocations in order not to regret afterwards when the truths are eventually out. Reacting momentarily to situations without examining the impact and consequences is a dangerous approach which should be avoided whatsoever. When such situations occur and retractions and apologies follow later, the end result will be a disgrace to the person and a mockery from the larger society.
The Member of Parliament for Asawase in the Ashanti Region, Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka is reported to have unreservedly apologised to the Supreme Court over allegations of bribery he made about an unnamed member of the bench.
In a formally written letter of apology to the Supreme Court, Alhaji Muntaka, who is the current Deputy Chief Whip in Parliament, withdrew the allegations and expressed regret about the unintended damage his comments had on the image of the judiciary and the Supreme Court in particular.
BRIBERY ALLEGATION:
Muntaka is reported to have alleged that a certain Supreme Court judge attempted to bribe a member of parliament of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to vote for the immediate past Speaker of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye, against the candidature of the NDC, Rt Hon Alban Sumani Kingsford Bagbin, the current Speaker of Parliament on January 7, 2021.
When this matter came to the knowledge of the Chief Justice, Kwasi Anin Yeboah he caused a statement to be issued by the Judicial Secretary expressing his shock about the allegation. The statement said; “The general public is hereby assured that the Chief Justice considers this allegation of impropriety a matter of grave importance to the integrity of the judiciary.”
RETRACTION AND APOLOGY:
But in his retraction and apology statement, Alhaji Muntaka said the disclosure was borne on a report from a trusted colleague which was that she had been approached by a Justice of the Supreme Court seeking to entice her to vote for a particular candidate during the contest for the Speakership of parliament.
“Admittedly because I did not specifically name any judge, this may have had the effect of scandalising the judiciary in its entirety. This unintended consequence is deeply regretted. I ,therefore, wish to respectfully retract same and apologise for the harm done to the image and reputation of my Lords Justices of the Supreme Court and the judiciary as a whole. Based upon good counsel, I have decided to let sleeping dogs lie and will consequently refrain from any further public commentary on the matter which I have indicated was originally reported to me by a female colleague parliamentarian.”
RECKLESS AND UNFOUNDED ALLEGATIONS:
On the spur of the moment, one can make certain reckless, baseless, unfounded and serious allegations which cannot be substantiated and that will turn out to tarnish and damage his or her reputation later when there is no iota of prove to support his or her allegations.
In actual sense, Alhaji Muntaka’s case should not be taken lightly for the fact that he is a parliamentarian and one of the country’s lawmakers and ought to know best that such reckless and unsubstantiated allegations are matters that cannot be tolerated in our democratic dispensation. It does not serve any purpose to malign people and for that matter a constitutional body like the judiciary, when you don’t have any clear evidence to support your allegations. When you later realise your mistakes and retract and apologise thereof, you expose yourself to public ridicule.
PARLIAMENTARIANS AND THE POSITIONS THEY OCCUPY:
While reprimanding our lawmaker for bringing an embarrassment to himself and the position he occupies in parliament, it is important to set the record straight for other MPs and people occupying positions of trust to be careful of their negative utterances without concrete proofs in order not to soil their image and reputation thereby incurring the displeasure of the people and exposing themselves to ridicule.
Our MPs are being reminded that the people gave them their mandates to serve them in parliament based on integrity and track record in their constituencies. The institution of parliament is a serious organ of state which is one of the three arms of governance. It is the watchdog of public interest and make Standing Orders to regulate its procedures. Whilst the Executive Power is vested in the President who is the Head of State, the law making powers of state are vested in Parliament.
Therefore, it requires that players within it, must show seriousness in their actions and whatever they do in that sacred institution. The over 30 million Ghanaians look up to them for guidance and counselling and, therefore, they must behave responsibly.
Ghanaians do not want to listen or hear such baseless and unfounded allegations which have no proofs whatsoever from those we have titled honourable because of their positions in the society. We are, indeed, tired of some of these reckless and baseless statements from our leaders and we say enough of these loose talks.
TREATMENT OF THE APOLOGY LETTER:
For now, the honourable member of parliament has submitted his letter of apology and retraction to the Chief Justice and for that matter the Judicial Service for consideration and subsequent pardon, but that is not the end of the matter. The decision to accept his apology lies in the bosom of the Chief Justice and the Judicial Service in general. Ghanaians will be waiting with bated breath for the outcome of this case.
However, one important issue which is not clear in Alhaji Muntaka’s apology is for the fact that he insisted that it is a trusted female colleague MP who broke the bribery allegation to him yet he failed to name that person in his apology.
Politicians occupying positions of trust must differentiate between political activities and their status in the society and always do the right things expected of them.
BY CHARLES NEEQUAYE
MY bosom friend Kofi Kokotako once told me that a person’s haircut portrays his character. I disagreed with him and said a person’s character portrays his haircut. All in all, we agreed between us that a presidential aspirant whose haircut is excessively punk cannot win even a unit committee election, much more a castle-bound one.
One thing I hated as a kid was getting my hair barbered because I never had the style I wanted. Usually, it was my father who was the tormentor-in-chief, and he chose the kind of design that would suit the shape and nature of my head and that of my elder brother Christian, whose name is more civilised than mine.
When we were through, we looked quite different from the other kids. I didn’t know where my Pop learnt that kind of style but I realised it was very colonial in form and outlook and I became sad when the girls giggled at my design.
Actually, it was something resembling a half-bow with a line cut through at about 38 degrees to the perpendicular. After the ordeal we looked half like the resident catechist and half like a fierce Regimental Sergeant-Major.
When I told my daddy that I had had enough of the ancient cut and wanted an Afro or at least a Tokyo Joe, he quickly explained that Tokyo Joe was for ruffians and that his style was tailor-made for aspiring doctors, lawyers, engineers and great states-men. He didn’t mention journalists though.
So I went and told the giggling girls that my hairdo was a magical one that was going to transform me into a doctor whether they liked it or not. I added that their brothers who had modern haircuts invariably were going to be labourers and tangas (town council). They laughed at me even the more.
They referred me to the conservancy labourer not far away who always wore my kind of cut and asked me why he wasn’t wearing a white gown with a stethoscope hanging from his neck, if that kind of haircut was indeed miracle-performing!
My Dad was quite scrupulous and dished us the haircut in its hardest form just before Palm Sunday. It helped boost our religious conviction and the Holy Spirit almost descended and settled on our wonderful heads.
At Sunday school one Palm Sunday, the lady teacher asked me to stand so that she could admire my hairdo. I was quite flattered and happy that I was the centre of attraction on a great occasion like Palm Sunday. So I quickly stood up and turned round like a model for all to see and envy my design.
It was when the teacher asked me whether my daddy was a policeman that I lost heart. At the mention of policeman, everybody started laughing and I concluded that the teacher wasn’t admiring my head after all. All she wanted to do was to predict my daddy’s occupation using my head as a determinant. I wasn’t pleased with the attempt.
Today whenever it is getting to Palm Sunday 1 remember the incident. And actually I have always enjoyed Palm Sunday because deep within me, I’m a very religious person and I believe that once God will judge us by the purity of our hearts and not the bottles of beer we quaff, I shall also be in heaven together with Korkorti.
Now if you observe properly, you’d realise it is those who are not believers who celebrate Easter to the fullest. They understand the real meaning of Palm Sunday because they equate it to the birthday of palm wine. They actually mourn the death of Christ and rejoice at his resurrection using palm in the form of wine.
Palm Sunday is best marked in the rural areas where palm wine is always available from dawn to dusk and vice versa. Normally, people start Palm Sunday at exactly 4.15 am when the freshly-tapped wine starts arriving. But you have to begin slowly otherwise you’d be in coma before the sun rises.
Easter is due again and this time as usual, the action is right in the countryside. Kwahu is going to shake, Tapa Abotoase will somersault and Peki would explode. All over the world, these three Sikaman towns are ranked as places where Easter is best celebrated with a hangover assured.
People from Britain, Germany and Holland come down either to Obo Kwahu or Avetile Peki to celebrate Easter. They never miss it. It is a yearly ritual. They save towards the occasion.
So during the celebrations, people from all over the country also converge on these places and the celebrants compare haircuts and note carefully those who have grown lean and those who are neither growing lean or growing fat.
In fact, people assess their fellow human beings to ascertain whether they are becoming prosperous or are chewing grass. News is also brought from all over the globe and those from Germany (Jaaamani) are the loudest. The way they talk, you would never know they are cleaning the whiteman’s toilet to make some dough. You’ll think they are Managing Directors of a multinational corporation in Dusseldof. Such is life.
It is during church service on Easter Sunday that the been-tos and the locals alike display whatever they have under their sleeves. The gentlemen are often resplendent in suits and black shining pairs of shoes, and the way they walk can be a clue as to where they are sojourning. With seamen for instance, it can be quite psychedelic. It is a real sight to behold especially if they hail from Kromanti, Moree or Abandze.
With the ladies, the spectacle is breathtaking. It is unbelievable! You can’t comprehend it using the human senses. You have to employ spiritual means. The kaba styles are of different kinds, styles, colour and combination of colours. Some of the styles are complemented with wings and when the lady wearing it is hurrying to “chapel” you’ll think she is actually airborne. She is practically a human vulture.
Then comes the picnic sessions which are normally well-attended by gate crashers, mental patients and political strategists who are also well-versed with what is going on between Kwame Pianim and kukrudu. So they brief their listeners and prophesy the outcome of court cases and election results. In exchange, they are well-fed, well-boozed and all.
But things do not happen only during the day time. At night, the devil usually takes over. Friendships are entered into, old girlfriends are re-baptised and there is love and romance.
By Easter Monday, marriages are broken, new marriages contracted, girlfriends are jilted and pregnancies are on the way awaiting abortion. Every year it happens, and this year it is going to happen again. The death and resurrection of the Lord will really be marked in both righteous and evil ways.
Perhaps, this is not how Judas intended it to be celebrated. Judas was the architect of the Holy Friday coup d’état against the Son of Man.
This article was first published on Saturday March 30, 1996
The Ghanaian community in Finland on Saturday, March 14, 2026, celebrated Ghana’s 69th independence anniversary in an impressive event in Helsinki, the capital city of Finland.
The event was organised by the Ghana Union Finland (GUF), an association of Ghanaian migrants in Finland. It was an occasion well attended by many people from the Ghanaian community in Finland, Finns and other nationalities.
The occasion was graced by the Special Guest, Her Excellency Abigail Naa Adzoko Kwashi, the Ambassador of Ghana to Norway with concurrent accreditation to Finland and Iceland. In her speech, the Ambassador encouraged Ghanaians living in Finland to pursue unity, actively participate in, and support the Ghana Union Finland to build a stronger body better positioned to advocate for its interests and goals.
Also present at the event was the Honorary Consul of Ghana in Finland, Mrs Kati Kivisaari, who has replaced the retired Ms Ulla Alanko. Mrs Kivisaari urged Ghanaians in Finland to remain good ambassadors of Ghana in their lives in Finland.
The event saw the inauguration of new executive members of the Ghana Union Finland. The team was inducted by Elder Samuel Anini, Patron of the Ghana Union Finland.
Earlier, a “royal entry” was performed by leaders of the Asanteman Finland and Mfantseman Kuw and other personalities in their colourful kente attire adorned with ornaments, amidst traditional music and adowa dance to usher in the Ambassador.
Unity and harmony
I see such events, especially the ones marking independence anniversaries, as ample display of unity and harmony in the Ghanaian migrant community as well as in the larger Ghana and Finland relations.
Some personalities present at the event were Nana Ekuoba Gyasi Gyimah and other leaders of Asanteman Finland, Mfantseman Kuw Finland, as well as representatives of other Ghanaian ethnic groups.
It was a very colourful occasion with dance and other performances such as poetry recitals. The audience was also treated to tasty Ghanaian dishes such as jollof rice, fried yam, and soft drinks.
For me personally, whenever I think about Ghana’s Independence Day anniversary every 6th of March, my mind also goes to Finland’s own day on 6th of December. The two dates always give me such a special, positive feeling. As soon as one of the dates ends, I begin a countdown to the other (next) date.
Last year on December 6, 2025, when Finland celebrated its 108th independence anniversary and I participated in two events marking the celebration in Helsinki, I started looking forward to Ghana’s 69th anniversary this year. Now that Ghana’s anniversary is over, I am looking forward to Finland’s 109th anniversary on December 6, 2026. That’s the beauty of it all for me.
Ensuring integration
What I see in all this, especially for Ghanaian migrants in Finland, is the chance for members of the Ghanaian diaspora in Finland to integrate into the Finnish society through such celebrations that are marked by social activities, affiliations and ideas of inclusion.
Inclusion is key to integration, and the two ideas undoubtedly build a sense of belonging. As I previously wrote, Finland sees the role of migrant associations as bridge-builders for the integration and inclusion of migrants through participation in the decision making process and by acting as a representative voice, which is highly appreciated in Finland.
As I keep pointing out, Finland encourages migrants’ participation in the planning of issues concerning the migrants themselves, using such a strategy as one of the efficient ways to improve their inclusion.
Thus, there is an enabling environment created within the Finnish cultural ecology that undoubtedly helps migrants to integrate into the host Finnish society. Thank you!
By Perpetual Crentsil
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