Broadcast Journalist and the host of Johnnie’s Bite on 3FM, Johnnie Beresford Hughes, has criticised the opposition for attempting to equalise past wrongs with the current government.
Johnnie Hughes noted that if President John Mahama travels on his brother’s private jet at no cost to the state, it’s a problem; if he uses a commercial flight, it’s still a problem.
Over the weekend, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Old Tafo, claimed John Mahama boarded a private plane at an incredible cost of $690,000.
Ekow Assafuah, in a Facebook post, wrote, “This private jet, M-BAEP, left Accra this morning around 7 a.m. It is estimated to cost $15,000 per hour to rent this flight. A simple calculation shows that the 7-hour journey already covered amounts to $105,000.
If the flight proceeds to Japan, which is likely to take about 12 hours, that would be another $180,000”.
He further added, “If it then continues to Singapore, approximately 7 hours away, that would add another $105,000.
Finally, if the jet flies directly to Germany and then back to Accra, a total of about 20 hours return trip, that would add another $300,000.
Altogether, the cost comes to an incredible $690,000 without including waiting times and/or stopovers”.
However, the Deputy Chief of Staff, Stan Dogbe, called out Vincent Ekow Assafuah, accusing him of feeding the public lies.
Stan Dogbe emphasised that, as at the claimed time Assafuah cited, President Mahama was live on TV between 10.30 am and 12.45 pm, attending the thanksgiving mass of Dr Edward Omane Boamah at the Christ the King Parish.
The deputy Chief of Staff, in his response, wrote, “This one here will also demand to be called ‘Honourable’!
Even if you are not street smart, it doesn’t take that much brain work to avoid embarrassing yourself, or?
The president was live on many TV networks between 10.30 am and 12.45 pm, attending the Thanksgiving mass of Dr Edward Omane Boamah at the Christ the King Parish.
Did he take off in the supposed jet at 7.00 am and flew back for the 10.30 am mass?
I guess we have to ask his classmates how smart this guy was in his lower school days because… Eish!
This is not how to be relevant oooh! Vincent Ekow Assafuah, invest in reading and how to be politically relevant and stop disgracing MPs”.
Stan Dogbe, in a separate post on Facebook, revealed President Mahama’s travel to Japan on board a commercial airline from Accra’s Kotoka International Airport.
Johnnie Beresford Hughes, speaking on his program, Johnnie’s Bite on 3FM, stated, “I see the banter on social media where we are talking about the president travelling out of the country to Japan and Singapore, and a member of parliament is the one pushing that wrong impression out there. That in itself is corruption because at the time when he said the president was supposed to be on a private jet in the sky the president was supposed to be in Church, and he was actually in Church because it was being shown on TV.
Does the president have a double? It corrupt mind; he doesn’t have a double, and it appears that if President Mahama travels on his brother’s plane, his Dzata plane, we have a problem with it, even though we are not paying for the president to use his brother’s plane.
If he doesn’t use a private jet and he travels commercial flight, we have a problem with it. This whole desperation to equalise the bad things that were done in the past should not be because we want the nation to work.
Johnnie Hughes further added, It is not only about financial corruption, the Germans came to tell us to cut costs, we didn’t mind them, many others were calling us to cut costs, we didn’t pay attention to them.
So if you want the nation to succeed and somebody else is doing it, and because it is not you, you must find a way to make it look bad, even if the thing is not bad. You are corrupt”.
Meanwhile, President John Dramani Mahama left the country on Sunday, August 17, for a two-nation official visit to Japan and Singapore.
Felix Kwakye Ofosu, in a statement, revealed that Mahama will participate in the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IX) and also speak at the Ghana Presidential Investment Forum.
He also added that the president will later continue to Singapore for a three-day state visit.
Watch the video below:
“If President Mahama travels on his brother’s private jet at no cost to the state, it’s a problem; if he uses a commercial flight, it’s still a problem” – Johnnie Hughes criticizes the opposition for attempting to equalize past wrongs with the current government#JohnniesBite pic.twitter.com/lOhn3TW1rU
— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) August 18, 2025