“I don’t owe Rockson an apology” – Afenyo-Markin

The Deputy Majority Leader of Parliament, Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin has said he does not owe the Member of Parliament for South Dayi any apology following his admission; the picture of alleged sand weaning activities in the Keta enclave was fake.

Afenyo-Markin, Dafeamekpor near brawl over Keta sand weaning picture

The South Dayi MP, Mr Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor on Friday challenged a picture presented by Mr Afenyo-Markin as evidence of sand weaning activities at Keta indicating that was one of the causative causes of the tidal wave in the area.

The picture, the cause of a near brawl in Parliament had several tipper trucks lined up at a coastal line and being loaded with beach sand.

Mr Afenyo Markin passed it off as an image captured from Keta in the Volta Region.

The Member of Parliament for the Efutu Constituency presented the picture while addressing a press conference by the Majority in Parliament on the tidal wave disaster in Keta.

Keta sand weaning picture fake

The picture has since been established to be fake.

Fact checks  revealed,  it was first use in Sierra Leone on February 1, 2013 and has nothing to do with Keta.

I don’t owe Rockson an apology

However, speaking on JoyNews PM Express on Monday, November 15, Mr Afenyo-Markin said he does not owe Mr Dafeamekpor any apology even though the picture is not from Keta.

According to him, the MP had no right to interfere in the Majority’s press conference and disrupt it in the first place.

He added on the programme monitored by GhanaPlus.com that, Mr Dafeamekpo’s behavior was not parliamentary.

“I don’t owe Rockson an apology and I will explain to you why? You don’t disrupt somebody’s press conference by snatching his document, by shouting. That is not parliamentary, that is not how we operate. When NDC is doing its press conference, we don’t go there,” he said.

Mr Afenyo-Markin however, apologized to Ghanaians and the people of Keta, most, especially, for relying on the picture.

“…….to the extent that I had relied on the publication and as we speak, the source itself had pulled it down, I sincerely apologies for relying on this”

“Before we sign off, I once again render an unqualified apology.  We reasonable relied on this picture in an article the source has since pull down and I apologies and it wasn’t intended to mislead if it was so we wouldn’t have handed over all the documents,” Afenyo-Markin said.

“………..to all Ghanaians who had the opportunity of seeing this picture as being Keta sand weaning activity. The very people of the area who this picture depicted them of doing sand weaning with this, this apology also goes to them in all fairness”, he said when asked who are you apologizing to.

Nevertheless, the MP still stands by his assertion that sand weaning activities had been ongoing in the community, some of which the media had reported.

Source: GhanaPlus.com