Manasseh Azure Awuni, an Investigative journalist, has reacted to claims by Sammy Appiah Darko, the Office of the Special Prosecutor’s (OSP) Director of Strategy, Research, and Communication, over an alleged government WhatsApp group.
On JoyNews Newsfile on Saturday, December 6, 2025, Sammy Appiah Darko claimed he had an encounter with Manasseh about an issue in a group they both belong to, created by the government.
Sammy Darko claimed, “I’ve had an encounter with Manasseh over this. There is a government WhatsApp group that we are on, and he brings this issue up. In fact, as he said, he’s had the opportunity to see first-hand some of the work that we have done”.
He added, “The point I’m making is that it is created by the government because we are charting a new path on our anti-corruption policy.”
However, Manasseh Azure Awuni, in a sharp rebuttal, clarified that the John Mahama government has not constituted a WhatsApp group for any clandestine or discreet activities.
According to Manasseh Azure Awuni, he does not belong to or know of any government WhatsApp group that discusses discreet activities.
He revealed that there is a group with institutional representation which has all anti-corruption agencies in the country to develop a five-year National Ethics and Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NEACAP) to replace the expired 10-year NACAP.
The Investigative journalist in a post on Facebook wrote, “There is a working group that is developing a five-year National Ethics and Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NEACAP) to replace the expired 10-year NACAP.
The working group has institutional representation from all the state anti-corruption agencies, representatives of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, GIZ, the judiciary, the A-G, civil society groups, the police, FIC, youth representation, development partners of Ghana, and individuals who have contributed to the fight against corruption.
I am a member of the NEACAP Working Group on account of my work in the fight against corruption. Sammy Darko is a representative of the OSP in that group.
The NEACAP working group was publicly inaugurated and covered by the media. The group’s activities and regional consultations have been widely reported in the media. (A Google search will produce tons of stories about the NEACAP Working Group.)
The Group has a WhatsApp platform that coordinates its activities.
I don’t know how this is a “government WhatsApp group” as claimed by Sammy Darko, and suggested by others to mean the government’s capture of critical voices. The host of Newsfile, Samson Anyenini, perhaps anticipated this twist; that’s why he attempted to correct Sammy Darko when he called it a government WhatsApp Group.
The government has not constituted a WhatsApp group for any clandestine or discreet activities that I know of or belong to. The Group Sammy Darko referenced is the publicly inaugurated NEACAP Working Group, as I have stated above”, his statement concluded.
See the post below: