Ayensuano DCE explains her ‘using ¢4.5b to repair ¢2b motor grader’ statement

The District Chief Executive Officer of the Ayensuano District Assembly in the Eastern Region, Josephine Awuku Ansaa Inkoom, has clarified a statement she made about an excavator she repaired to fix roads in her district.
Ansaa Inkoom said in an interview aired on UTV that she repaired the motor grader for ¢4.5 billion, which saved the assembly some money because it could have cost ¢2 billion to buy a new one.

In a statement copied to GhanaWeb, the DCE said that the amounts she mentioned were in old cedis, adding that she erroneously mentioned some of the figures.

She reiterated that the decision of the assembly to repair the excavator was prudent because it could have cost more if a new one was bought.

“…the amounts I mentioned in the video were old cedis and it was a harmless slip of tongue when I stated that a new motor grader procured would have cost the assembly more.

“The decision by the Assembly to not procure a new motor grader but repair the old one was financially prudent and economically sound,” she wrote.

Ansaa Inkoom added that the statement she made is intentionally being misinterpreted by members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

“…the false narratives that the NDC and its surrogates have put on the viral video are purely propaganda and political mischief,” she said.

My attention has been drawn to an interview I granted UTV which a spin has been put on and circulated virally on social media.

Without a shred of equivocation, I wish to set the records straight as follows:

1. That the amounts I mentioned in the video were OLD CEDIS and it was a harmless slip of tongue when I stated that a new Motor Grader procured would have cost the assembly more.

2. That the decision by the Assembly to not procure a new Motor Grader but repair the old one was financially prudent and economically sound.

3. That the false narratives that the NDC and its surrogates have put on the viral video are purely propaganda and political mischief.

4. That the District Assembly’s annual budget is a public document.

Respectively, I entreat Ghanaians to disregard the false narratives attached to the video.

The Assembly is committed to putting to judicious use, every pesewa it receives to realize the government’s aim to scale up development.