The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has initiated legal action for defamation against Captain Smart, the host of Onua TV's Morning Show. Mr. Ofori-Atta alleges that Captain Smart made false claims during one of his programs, accusing him of receiving a 10% share of the $3 billion bailout provided by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Ghana.
The purported statement made by Captain Smart implies that Ken Ofori-Atta has personally taken a 10% portion from the IMF funds whenever Ghana acquires a loan.
“Are you aware that Ken Ofori-Atta has taken his 10% of the IMF money? [For] Every loan we take he takes 10%”. Captain Smart said on his show.
The legal team representing the Finance Minister argues that these statements wrongly portray Mr. Ofori-Atta as engaging in corrupt practices.
In the lawsuit, the Minister formally requests the recovery of Ten Million Ghana Cedis (GH¢10,000,000.00) as general damages, including aggravated and/or exemplary damages for defamation resulting from the libelous statement made by Captain Smart.
Additionally, Ken Ofori-Atta seeks a permanent injunction to prevent Captain Smart, along with his employees, representatives, or anyone acting on his behalf, from making similar defamatory statements about him in the future.
Furthermore, it is expected that Captain Smart will apologize and retract the previously made statement.
Meanwhile, Ghana's request for a $3 billion bailout spread over three years to support its debt-ridden economy has been approved. The approval has led to the immediate release of $600 million, marking the initial stage of the agreement between Ghana and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Will this be a way to gag him from criticizing the government?
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