Withdraw Nana Addo’s ‘plagiarized’ speech – Minority

The Minority caucus in Ghana’s Parliament is demanding a withdrawal of President Nana Akufo Addo’s inaugural address.

The group in a statement signed by the Deputy Minority Leader,  James Klutse Avedzi, asked that the NPP to withdraw the “plagiarized address” and resubmit another speech which will reflect all “attributable sources.”

“Considering that this inaugural address was made before us in Parliament in compliance with the Constitution and same having been captured by the Hansard Department as part of the official records of Parliament, the Minority demands that the now infamous plagiarized inaugural address be withdrawn and expunged from Parliamentary records with liberty to resubmit another speech not tainted with fraud and reflecting all attributable sources.

“The sanctity of Parliament must be respected and preserved, and it is our expectation that the new Speaker of Parliament the Rt. Hon. Prof. Aaron Michael Oquaye who thankfully is an academic of some repute, will better appreciate the full ramifications of what is before us.”

The governing NPP has come under intense criticism after it was discovered that portions of President Nana Addo’s inaugural speech were lifted from speeches by some former presidents of the United States.

Though the Director of Communications at the presidency, Eugene Arhin, has issued an apology  for the development, some Ghanaians are calling for stiffer sanctions, arguing that an apology is not enough.

The Minority said: “This monumental plagiarism scandal which has now assumed international dimensions with major global news networks including CNN, BBC, AlJazeera, Reuters, Washington Post, Metro News, Nairobi News, Vanguard of Nigeria and Yahoo News all casting Ghana in bad light has clearly tarnished the image of Ghana abroad and brought upon this great nation untold embarrassment never witnessed in the aftermath of a Presidential inauguration.”