Accra, Sept. 1, GNA - The Free Tsatsu Campaign (FTC) said on Monday that it had noted with grave concern a statement made by Nana Ohene Ntow, General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), at its rally at Bukom Square last Friday that the jailed former boss of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation spent money on banana plantations and telephones.

A statement signed by Mr Kyeretwie Opoku quoted Nana Ohene Ntow as saying in Ga: "Ni ake shika ha Tsatsu Tsikata ni eke ya tawo oil e, eke ya hu akwadu nmo ke telephone", meaning Tsatsu was given resources for oil exploration but he rather used the money for banana cultivation and for telephone. "This is untrue and mischievous.

Tsatsu was neither charged for nor convicted of spending money on banana cultivation or telephones," the statement said. "It would appear that having jailed an innocent person, the government of the New Patriotic Party is seeking to justify its actions by inventing and peddling falsehoods." It said the mention of "telephone" must have been in reference to the investment in Westel which had become Ghana's second telecommunication operator and which the NPP government had recently sold for over 100 million dollars.

"The establishment of Westel was part of investments in required infrastructure for the development of hydrocarbon resources in a country such as Ghana.

"The flippant manner in which the NPP refers to this important national asset clearly demonstrates a complete lack of knowledge about the oil industry and is also dishonest. This should be of concern to the people of Ghana, especially as this country stands at the threshold of oil production."

The statements said in making this statement publicly on the same political platform as Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the NPP flag bearer, who was also the Attorney General at the time that Tsatsu Tsikata was charged and who actually led the initial prosecution, the New Patriotic Party had once again confirmed that they took a political decision to jail an innocent person using the instrumentality of the judiciary. 1 Sept. 08