‘Afenyo-Markin’s smear campaign against me is about extortion’ – Sammy Gyamfi

The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, has accused Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin of pursuing a personal smear campaign against him as part of an alleged attempt to extort him.

The two have been engaged in a public dispute over claims of a US$1.7 billion loss associated with the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP), which was implemented through GoldBod.

Afenyo-Markin has repeatedly questioned GoldBod’s financial performance and the circumstances surrounding the reported losses, while Sammy Gyamfi has rejected the claims and accused the Minority Leader of deliberately misrepresenting the facts.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, August 22, the GoldBod CEO said he would continue to respond strongly to what he described as personal attacks.

“Someome is out to demonize you and denigrate you, and to tag you with something he knows to be false, wages a persistent, sustained smear campaign against your person, and you have an opportunity to respond to that person. You don't give such a person a peck on the cheek and a bouquet of flowers,” he said.

Sammy Gyamfi said he had not insulted the Minority Leader in his responses, adding that his comments were aimed at challenging what he considers to be false claims against him and GoldBod.

He also questioned why Afenyo-Markin would suggest that he could face onerous bail conditions over the GoldBod controversy when, according to him, the IMF report being cited does not attribute the reported losses to GoldBod.

The GoldBod CEO further sought to contrast Afenyo-Markin's criticisms with the financial records of some state-owned enterprises where the Minority Leader previously served as board chairman.

He cited reported cumulative losses at Ghana Water Limited and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) during periods when Afenyo-Markin served on their boards, arguing that such records did not make the Minority Leader immune from criticism.

“You have a cumulative loss of 3.3 billion at Ghana Water, 8.2 billion at ECG. You are not facing any criminal action and onerous bail terms. Why should you project that on me when I have not made a loss?” he asked.