Policy analyst Steve Manteaw has criticised Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin’s remarks during a petition handover, saying they overshadowed the NPP’s “Democracy Under Attack” demonstration.
“Afenyo’s unguarded speech has taken the shine off the demonstration,” Manteaw wrote in a social media post. “Maturity matters.”
The criticism follows an NPP march from the Supreme Court to Jubilee House on 6 August, where the party presented petitions accusing the government of threatening judicial independence and democratic institutions. Afenyo-Markin objected on camera to the Presidency sending only Presidential Staffer Nana Yaa Jantuah to receive the petition, arguing the gesture disrespected the seniority of the NPP delegation, which included the party’s general secretary and other senior officials.
Jantuah rejected his characterisation of her, after reports that Afenyo-Markin had described her as “a nobody” or a “third-tier” staffer, saying she was a senior government official and assuring the party the petition would reach President John Mahama. The remarks drew criticism from the PNC Women’s Wing, which demanded an apology.
Manteaw pointed to Jantuah’s seniority within the Jubilee House staff and drew a comparison to a past demonstration in which NDC MPs marching to the Bank of Ghana were received by a head of security, saying such courtesies, once accepted, should be extended equally.
