The National Media Commission (NMC) has directed Mr. Steve Akorlie (NDC Ho East) to retract a statement he recently made against the Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama at a forum at Ho.

The NMC has also asked the MP to apologise unconditionally to the Vice President and advertise the apology once in the Ghanaian Chronicle. This follows a complaint lodged by the Vice President to the NMC against Mr. Steve Akorlie and the Ghanaian Chronicle, a release issued on Tuesday by the NMC said in Accra.

It said the complaint was in respect of a publication in the Ghanaian Chronicle on Monday, September 17, 2001 with the headline, "Ho MP lambasts Vice Prez, His road construction company is most inefficient".

The newspaper quoted Mr Akorlie as allegedly calling the Vice President "a notorious and stubborn liar" at the forum in reaction to comments the Vice President was alleged to have made at a meeting with chiefs at Ho.Mr Akorlie was also alleged to have deliberately confused or associated Lidra Company with the Vice President. The letter of complaint stated that the statement made by the MP had "a malicious intent."

It said being the Vice President of the Republic of Ghana apart, "His Excellency Aliu Mahama is a very highly esteemed and responsible citizen of the nation for which reason to describe him as a notorious and stubborn liar without justification whatsoever, is not only unacceptable but despicable and makes substantial danger to his hard earned reputation apparent".

The statement said the compliant therefore, sought a retraction of the statement and an unqualified apology for unjustifiably calling the Vice President "a notorious and stubborn lair".

In his response, Mr Akorlie stated that he reacted to specific allegations said to have been made by the Vice President of the Ho township roads projects, which were initiated during his tenure as the acting Minister of Roads and Highways.

He admitted saying in direct reply to the statements attributed to the Vice President concerning the project that they were lies. "However, he categorically denied qualifying it with the words stubborn and notorious", the statement said.

It said Mr Akorlie stated that he spoke Ewe and, therefore, found it difficult to appreciate how words he used could be interpreted to mean "stubborn and notorious".

In evidence, Mr Frank Muzzu, the Volta Regional correspondent of the Ghanaian Chronicle in Ho, maintained that Mr Akorlie, who is his friend of over 20 years and who spoke Ewe at the forum, was fuming and referred to the Vice President in a very disparaging and uncomplimentary language, which he translated as "notorious and stubborn lair".

Mr Muzzu concluded that the newspaper published exactly what the MP said in reference to the Vice President at the forum. The statement said the Commission found as a fact that, "the words used by Hon. Akorlie, in reference to the Vice President could be translated as 'a stubborn and notorious liar'".

The NMC said the words were disparaging of the Vice President and brought his personality into disrepute. "The reporter and the Ghanaian Chronicle could not be faulted as the publication represented accurately what transpired at the forum and it is inappropriate to repeat in this statement the words attributed to Hon. Akorlie in Ewe as related by the Reporter to the Commission."

The Commission has appealed to all in headship positions to be circumspect in their publication, tolerant and moderate in their public pronouncements as their pronouncements as captured by the media were bound to make tremendous impact on readers and listeners.