Afenyo-Markin’s GoldBod criticisms are just smear campaign to fold and oil their palms – Sammy Gyamfi

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, has accused the Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, of pursuing a smear campaign against the institution rather than engaging in genuine public accountability.

According to Mr Gyamfi, the Effutu MP, continued criticism of GoldBod is part of what he described as an attempt to tarnish the institution's reputation through false claims and political blackmail.

Mr Afenyo-Markin has raised concerns about the financial implications of GoldBod's operations, particularly losses associated with the Bank of Ghana's Domestic Gold Purchase Programme.

The concerns follow an International Monetary Fund (IMF) assessment indicating that the programme recorded losses of about $1.7 billion in 2025.

Speaking during the Government Accountability Series on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, Mr Gyamfi dismissed the criticisms, insisting that they were intended to discredit GoldBod rather than contribute to a substantive public discussion.

“Afenyo-Markin’s continuing antics must therefore be seen for what they are—a desperate smear campaign by persons who have specialised in sophistry and political blackmail in pursuit of selfish ends,” he said.

He added: “These are devious extortionists who will come at you with lies to tarnish your reputation in the hope that you will fold and settle for what they call compulsory arbitration and oil their palms.”

Mr Gyamfi maintained that GoldBod would not be intimidated by what he described as such tactics.

“Well, this time around they found the wrong target,” he added.

The GoldBod CEO said Ghanaians deserved a more substantive discussion on the performance of state institutions, insisting that such debates must be based on verifiable facts and evidence.

“The Ghanaian people deserve serious public discourse founded on facts, evidence, truth, and not endless recycling of falsehoods in the hope that repetition will lend credibility to them and turn fiction to facts,” he said.