The President's Office has responded to several reports that the Achimota Forest Reserve was purportedly sold.
Mr Eugene Arhin, Director of Communications at the Presidency, commented on the matter in a social media post, sharing a quotation from President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo from the World Press Freedom Day Awards Dinner in 2018.
The president warned against the mainstream media's rising trend of deception in the quoted comment.
As a result of the twisting of facts, he claims, disinformation causes everyone to rush to the bottom. "The second danger we must avoid is unintended disinformation, which is occasionally broadcast by mainstream media and has the ability to drag us all down in a race to the bottom."
"This occurs when facts are twisted to achieve the best headline or when an unsubstantiated claim is published in a rush to be the first to break the news.
"The concerning tendency is that, even after the public has been deceived and the correct facts are eventually revealed, the mainstream media frequently shies away from admitting that "we erred."
President Akufo said, "The temptation is typically to sweep it under the rug and go on to the next great topic." Background
After an Executive Instrument (E.I) about the Achimota Forest Reserve went viral, social media sites, notably Twitter, had 'Achimota Forest' trending at number one.
According to E.I. 144, a section of the Achimota Forest under President Nana Akufo-administration Addo's would no longer be recognized as a forest reserve as of May 1, 2022.
It further specifies that the District Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority must produce a master plan for the land's development and submit it for approval to the Lands Minister.
While preparing the master plan, the District Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority has been entrusted with taking into account the ecological integrity of an adjacent forest reserve. Meanwhile, Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor has dismissed claims that the Achimota Forest has been sold off.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Mr Jinapor said that the “Achimota Forest has not and will not be sold”.
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