Former officials of the Akufo-Addo administration have pushed back against claims linking the rollout of the Information Services Department (ISD) mobile vans to the current government, insisting the project was fully conceptualised and executed under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.
This follows a circulating video showing the Eastern Regional Minister, Rita Akosua Awatey, commissioning two ISD mobile vans at the Eastern Regional Coordinating Council, with remarks attributed to the administration of John Dramani Mahama.
However, former Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has clarified that the 40 ISD Information Vans were fully conceptualised, contracted, procured, and delivered under the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia administration as part of a broader ISD retooling programme initiated after the COVID-19 pandemic.
He explained that the Project Concept Note (PCN) was submitted to the Ministry of Finance in 2022 and received approval on 3 October 2023.
Following this, a commencement warrant was issued in June 2024, enabling technical teams from the Ministry of Information, ISD, and the State Transport Company (STC) to travel to China for inspection of the vehicles.
According to him, the vans were initially expected to arrive in Ghana in October 2024 but were delayed, eventually arriving at the Tema Port on 19 November 2024.
The former minister stressed that the initiative was designed to strengthen public education and community sensitisation, particularly in rural and hard-to-reach communities where traditional outreach systems have weakened despite the growth of electronic media.
He noted that the ISD had not received a major fleet upgrade since 2007 under then Information Minister Dan Botwe, describing the new vans as a significant intervention to revive grassroots public communication.
The Akufo-Addo administration, led by former President Nana Akufo-Addo and former Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, has therefore been credited by its members as the originators of the project.
Criticising what they describe as misattribution of credit, the former officials questioned why the current Ministry for Government Communications has not publicly clarified the origin of the project.
“Facts are sacred,” a source close to the former team said, adding that all documentation regarding approvals, procurement, and shipment exists to support their claims.
They further argued that the situation highlights the importance of governance continuity and accountability in public infrastructure delivery.
The issue continues to generate political discussion as both sides of the divide present competing narratives over ownership of the initiative.
