Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, says he intends to pursue the appropriate legal remedies over what he describes as false and defamatory statements made against him by the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi.
The development marks a further escalation in the public dispute between the two over the reported US$1.7 billion, equivalent to about GH¢22 billion, loss associated with the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme in 2025.
Mr Gyamfi has repeatedly described Mr Afenyo-Markin as an “extortionist”, accusing him of pursuing a campaign against GoldBod for purposes other than legitimate parliamentary scrutiny.
Speaking during the government’s Accountability Series, Mr Gyamfi described the Minority Leader and those supporting his position as “devious extortionists” who, he alleged, use false claims to tarnish the reputation of their targets in the hope of forcing them to settle and “oil their palms.”
The GoldBod CEO subsequently challenged Mr Afenyo-Markin to sue him if he considered the allegation defamatory, insisting that he was prepared to defend the claim in court.
In an interview on Joy News on Saturday, August 22, Mr Gyamfi reiterated the allegation, saying there were “many underlying issues” between him and the Minority Leader that the public did not know about.
He questioned why Mr Afenyo-Markin had not challenged the allegation or threatened legal action if he believed the description was false.
Mr Gyamfi also maintained that his use of the word “extortionist” was not merely an insult but was based on issues that the Minority Leader is aware of.
Mr Afenyo-Markin in a statement on Saturday evening responded, rejecting the allegation and other claims about his motives for questioning GoldBod and the reported losses.
“Over the past week, all manner of insults and personal attacks have been directed at me, apparently in an attempt to impugn my character and divert attention from the substantive questions I have raised,” he said.
“False and defamatory allegations have also been made about my motives for questioning the losses incurred under the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme and the role of GoldBod in those transactions.”
The Minority Leader said the allegations were “entirely false” and that he rejected them “without qualification.”
He insisted that his actions were motivated by Parliament’s constitutional oversight responsibilities and not by any improper motive.
Mr Afenyo-Markin said the personal attacks were an attempt to shift the focus from the substantive questions surrounding the GoldBod transactions.
He maintained that the Minority Caucus would continue to pursue a parliamentary inquiry into the reported GH¢22 billion loss and seek answers on the identities of the off-takers, discounts applied to their purchases, who authorised those discounts and the fees earned from the transactions.
He also wants the reported US$1.7 billion loss fully disaggregated to establish how much resulted from foreign-exchange differentials, gold purchase and sale prices, and the management decisions behind the transactions.
“These questions belong in the public record,” he said.
On the allegations made against him personally, Mr Afenyo-Markin stated: “I intend to pursue the appropriate legal remedies.”
The latest development comes after Mr Gyamfi publicly dared the Minority Leader to take him to court over the “extortionist” allegation, potentially setting the stage for a legal confrontation between the two officials if Mr Afenyo-Markin proceeds with the threatened action.