Investigative journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni has denied reports in some media that the Chief Executive Officer of Engineers and Planners, Ibrahim Mahama, has given himself up to seven days to remove pages from his latest book that are tarnishing his image.
Azure made the remarks in response to a demand by Mahama’s lawyers for him to retract and apologise for false allegations made in his latest book, “The President of Ghana Never Said a Thing”, in which Mahama had asked not to be sued or sued.
The book suggests that Universal Merchant Bank (UMB), formerly known as Merchant Bank, faced controversy when it was sold to private equity firm Fortis in 2013.
According to the author, South Africa’s FirstRand Bank was said to be ready to buy 75% of Merchant Bank’s shares for GH₵176 million, while Fortis only bought 90% of the state-owned bank’s shares for GH₵90 million.
“The controversy intensified when it emerged that Ibrahim Mahama, the younger brother of President John Mahama, was one of the then Merchant Bank’s largest debtors, and the bank fell into distress,” the book states.
Reacting to these allegations, Ibrahim Mahama, through his lawyers, has maintained that the information is false and has demanded a retraction of the publication and an apology.
Reacting to Mr Mahama’s remarks, the investigative journalist stood by the allegations made in the book but said he had conveyed Mr Mahama’s request to his lawyers and the matter would be addressed soon.
“I received a call on the news that Mr Ibrahim Mahama has ordered me to remove pages 89 and 90 of my book within seven days as the information is inaccurate. This is not accurate. Mr Ibrahim Mahama’s lawyers have written to me regarding a paragraph in the economics chapter of the book which states that Mr Ibrahim Mahama owed money to Merchant Bank when it was sold in 2013. His lawyers say it is not Mr Ibrahim Mahama who owed money to the bank but Engineers and Planners Limited, owned by Mr Ibrahim Mahama. I have conveyed their request to the lawyers and the matter will be addressed soon,” Azul said.
Disclaimer: The views, comments, opinions, contributions and statements made by readers and contributors on this platform do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of Multimedia Group Limited.
