Has Nyaho Tamakloe been pardoned?

Palaver -- NEW Ambassadors were “sent to school” last week, and Ghana Palaver got it just right!

In our issue of Tuesday, September 6 – Thursday, September 8, 2005, we scooped that Mrs. Mokowa Blay Adu-Gyamfi was to be posted to Sierra Leone and Mrs. Naa Oboshie Sai-Cofie was to be posted to South Africa.

So shocked was the NPP Government about the accuracy of our scoop that in order to deny us credibility, they released the names of all the other Ambassadors designate to their mouthpiece, the Daily Guide!

Significantly missing from the 'Daily Guide' list were the names of the two ladies we had scooped, not the least because Dr. (Mrs.) Adu-Gyamfi is the wife of Dr. Paul Adu-Gyamfi, then President of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) whose members were then on strike and which appointment was therefore seen as “bribe” to the GMA President.

Mrs. Naa Oboshie Sai-Cofie's mother heads the Office of Accountability at the Castle and her father is a Special Adviser to President Kufuor on HIV/AIDS Affairs. She herself has been mentioned in romantic alliance with *** **********.

Following our exposure, the Government decided to shelve the postings for some time to allow things to cool and also to deny us credibility.

But the 'Daily Guide' publication did one thing, though. It enabled 'The Ghana Palaver' to raise the criminal past of Dr. Nyaho Tamakloe, the then Ambassador-designate to Serbia and Montenegro

In a 'Front Page Comment' in our subsequent issue, we raised the question, “Has Kufuor pardoned Nyaho-Tamakloe?'

That question is still relevant, since the public has not been told that Nyaho-Tamakloe has been pardoned. We therefore proceed to re-raise the issue as we raised it is our issue of Friday, September 9 – Monday, September 12, 2005: We know that Dr. Nyaho-Tamakloe is a criminal convict. He was convicted alongside Colonel C. D. Benni (rtd) and lawyer Kocuvie –Tay by a Public Tribunal in the mid-1980s for corruption and duping a foreigner, and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment.

We also know that Dr. Nyaho-Tamkloe served his full term (minus the mandatory one-third remission for good behaviour) before he was released.

Article 73 of the Constitution states that, “the Government of Ghana shall conduct its international affairs in consonance with the principles of public international law and diplomacy in a manner consistent with the mutual interest of Ghana.”

One of such principles is that an ex-convict may not be appointed as Ambassador or High Commissioner unless he or she had been pardoned.

We do not know whether or not Dr. Nyaho-Tamakloe has been pardoned, but we do know that if he has been pardoned, that pardon has not been made public. If Dr. Nyaho-Tamakloe has indeed been pardoned, then we ask for pardon for raising the issue. But if he has not, then we blame the Council of State, who under Article 74 (1) of the constitution, were deemed to have been consulted by the President before the appointments were made, for causing embarrassment to the country”.

Once again, however, we ask that if Dr. Nyaho Tamakloe has indeed been pardoned, then we ask for pardon for raising the issue.

Last Saturday, both the 'Daily Graphic' and the 'Ghanaian Times' carried the story of the 12 new Ghanaian envoys attending a two-week seminar before travelling to take up their new diplomatic appointments.

And there, right smack in the middle of the names, were two of the people that we scooped – Dr. Nyaho Tamakloe for Serbia and Montenegro and Dr. (Mrs.) Mokowa Adu-Gyamfi for Sierra Leone.

Who says 'The Ghana Palaver' hasn't got eyes and ears.