Claim: Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, running mate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), claimed that former President John Evans Atta Mills and his then-Vice President, John Dramani Mahama, did not reside in the Jubilee House for eight years because of its proximity to a ‘zongo’.
Verdict: False! Findings reveal that while the late Prof. Atta Mills and John Mahama did not reside in the Jubilee House during their eight-year tenure, the decision was based on security concerns, not its proximity to a ‘zongo.’ Additionally, President Mahama operated from the Jubilee House during his presidency.
Full Context
The Jubilee House, originally known as the Flagstaff House located at Kanda in Accra, was the residence and office of Ghana’s first president, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. His occupancy of the structure marked the transition from British colonial power to independence.
In November 2008, Former President Kuffour refurbished the Flagstaff House and renamed it the Golden Jubilee House a few months before his term ended. The refurbishment, which was anticipated to cost between $60 and $70 million, at the time appeared to have displeased and upset members of the opposing party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
During their campaigns ahead of the 2008 elections, former President John Evans Atta Mills and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) officially refused to recognise or occupy the Jubilee House as a form of protest, claiming that the reconstruction occurred when Ghanaians were experiencing economic hardship.
On Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, a social media post by GHone TV on Instagram, had an audio of the running mate of the NPP, Matthew Opoku Prempeh, also known as Napo, saying “For 8 years, they [Prof. John Evans Atta Mills and John Dramani Mahama] never lived in the Jubilee House because it is near zongo, and zongo is Muslim.”
Later that day, the same media house issued a fresh piece that had the audio transcribed into a news card.
Happy FM also published the story on their website, referencing it as statements made by Napo during a campaign tour of the Northern Region.
The British used the Hausa word “zongo,” which means “caravan camping place” or “traveller lodging place,” to describe the area of the town where Muslim traders resided (Cambridge University Press).
In Ghana, communities within cities and towns predominantly inhabited by Muslims are commonly referred to as zongos, although the original term is actually ‘zango’, which has been corrupted to ‘zongo’ over time. (Graphic Online)
CitiVerify verified the claim and made the following findings.
Verification
According to local media reports, the NDC ticket at the time – Prof. Evans Atta-Mills and John Mahama cited security concerns as one of the reasons for their hesitancy to occupy the seat of government.
In a Peace FM publication, Brigadier General Nunoo Mensah, National Security Advisor to the President, stated that “the newly constructed seat of government; the Golden Jubilee House is not safe enough to serve as the seat of government.”
CitiVerify trailed comments made by Prof. John Evans Atta Mills about the subject at the time and came across another news item published by Peace FM in which Former President John Evans Atta Mills reiterated that he would only move to the Jubilee House when he gets full clearance from national security to do so.
Edwin Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, the director of operations at the presidency during former President John Evans Atta Mills’ administration in an interview with CitiVerify reiterated that Mills and Mahama did not reside in the Jubilee House for clear reasons like security and the residence’s state of disrepair. He stressed that Mills and Mahama’s decision not to reside in the Jubilee House are not for the reasons Napo claimed.
“President Mills never worked or lived in the Jubilee House. In contrast, President Mahama worked from there (Jubilee House) but didn’t reside there. Similarly, Presidents Kufuor and Akufo-Addo worked from the Jubilee House but maintained separate residences.”
He stressed that “It’s absurd for Napo to have made such unfounded and misleading assertions”
Richard Mensah, Citi FM’s presidential correspondent during the administration of the late John Evans Atta-Mills’ also told CitiVerify that the decision not to reside in the Jubilee House was due to safety and security concerns.
“During President Mills’ tenure, he [Prof. Mills] worked from Osu Castle, whereas his vice president [Mahama] operated from the Jubilee House but resided elsewhere. At the time, the Jubilee House was not suitable for presidential residence.”
Conclusion
Based on the above, we conclude that Napo’s claim that the late Prof. Evans Atta Mills and John Dramani Mahama chose not to reside in the Jubilee House because it was close to a zongo is false. Many past news articles indicate that it was due to security and safety concerns.
Source:citinewsroom.com