Accra, December 8, 2025 \u2014 GhanaSpeak News Desk<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A major political controversy has erupted after a representative of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) appeared to confirm the existence of a WhatsApp group that includes senior journalists, civil society actors, and officials from state accountability institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The comment, made during a live interview on JoyNews\u2019 Newsfile<\/em>, suggested the group includes the Auditor-General and even representatives of the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The OSP official\u2019s remark came during a discussion on corruption and ethical reform. When asked by journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni about coordination between the OSP and government actors, the official replied, \u201cThere is a government WhatsApp group that we are on\u2026 to chart a new path on ethics and corruption policy.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He later attempted to clarify the point, insisting the group was \u201cnot influenced\u201d by government direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social media reaction was immediate. The hashtag #Abanfooaba<\/strong> trended within hours, with many users questioning why journalists and oversight institutions would be part of a group apparently coordinated by the ruling administration. The timing also added fuel to the controversy, with the comment occurring on the first anniversary of President John Mahama\u2019s 2024 election victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Opposition figures quickly moved to frame the development as evidence of political interference. In a Twitter Space hosted hours later, contributors described the group as a \u201cnarrative-shaping circle\u201d protecting government interests at a time of increasing economic pressure and complaints of rising unemployment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Franklin Cudjoe of IMANI Africa distanced himself from the group, stating that no member of his organization was part of the chat, and raised concerns that such a platform could be used to influence accountability processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unconfirmed reports circulating online suggest that the original WhatsApp group was dissolved shortly after the backlash and replaced with a new one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Presidency is yet to issue an official response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ghana continues to face questions over youth joblessness and slow progress on the promised 24-hour economy. Opposition figures say the current scandal only reinforces fears that key state institutions are compromised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GhanaSpeak.com will continue monitoring this developing story.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ghana\u2019s political space erupted Saturday after an OSP official admitted on JoyNews that a \u201cgovernment WhatsApp group\u201d exists involving journalists, CSOs, and accountability bodies.<\/p>\n

The official quickly tried to clarify, but the comment triggered nationwide criticism and the hashtag #Abanfooaba.<\/p>\n

Opposition figures say the group could influence public messaging at a time of high youth unemployment and stalled 24-hour economy promises.<\/p>\n

Reports suggest the original group has already been dissolved and replaced.<\/p>\n

The Presidency has not responded.<\/p>\n

Story developing\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2941,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[188,5],"tags":[192,191,194,127],"class_list":["post-2938","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-politics","tag-ghana-corruption","tag-ghanas-special-prosecutor","tag-news","tag-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2938","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2938"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2938\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2944,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2938\/revisions\/2944"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ghanaspeak.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}