Accra, Ghana - Claims of drug money funding political campaigns, the real debt figures and public flogging of a teacher by a chief for allegedly smoking cannabis in public were played up by the Ghanaian media this week. With the world’s attention focused on World Drugs Day last Sunday, the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), Yaw Akrasi-Sarpong, reignited speculations that some politicians funded their expensive campaigns from drug money when he disclosed that the board was following leads about drug money for next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections. Akrasi-Sarpong said as the 2012 elections approached, NACOB would be very vigilant and monitor the situation carefully to bring any culprit to book.  The state-owned Graphic had the headline “We've the list”, with the story saying that Akrasi-Sarpong, has insisted that NACOB has a list of politicians who are funded by drug barons but no one can pressurise the board to release the names.

He said the board would resist any intimidation and attempts to stampede it to make the list public and dared politicians who had problems with the position of the board to go to court.

Reacting to calls by politicians that he should disclose the names or forever hold his peace, Mr. Akrasi-Sarpong said: “I dare them to go to court if they have any problem. My work is not a politician's work and no politician can force me to mention any names.”

The Enquirer, which is close to the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), had the headline “Ken Agyepong welcomes NACOB probe”.

It said opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP, Kennedy Agyepong, welcomed the move by NACOB to investigate and arrest persons who were involved in illegal trade in hard drugs.

However, he said, even though the move was laudable, he did not believe they would succeed if they failed to conduct serious independent investigations into the issue.

“NPP panics over NACOB boss warning” was another headline in the Enquirer. It said “in a clear case of ‘who the cap fits let him wear it’, the NPP had descended heavily on the NACOB boss for issuing a stern warning that there will be no room for drug money in 2012.

Mr. Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, NPP Chairman, said Akrasi-Sarpong should produce evidence to back his claims and avoid speaking loosely.

The Graphic had another story under the headline “We're vulnerable to narcotics – School children” with the story saying school children in Tamale, the Northern Region capital have stated that they are vulnerable to the use of narcotics following the failure of state institutions to prohibit public smoking.

It said the children raised eyebrows over the failure of state security institutions to prevent the transit of drugs in and out of the country.

The pro-opposition Daily Guide said a new law with a view to toughening laws against narcotics was currently with the Attorney-General's Department awaiting further action.

In its story with the headline “Laws on narcotics tougher”, it said when passed into law, it will convert NACOB into an independent commission and make the laws on narcotics tougher.

The government was angered by the pro-opposition New Statesman, which said the government had doubled Ghana’s debt in two years.

The government reacted immediately, dismissing the story as “yet another disappointing lie” by the opposition.

A government statement on Wednesday said Ghana's total debt as of May 2011 was US$13.4 billion, up from US$8.1 billion at the end of the 2008 Financial Year.

'The debt to GDP ratio stands at about 35 per cent. This ratio demonstrates that the nation's debt is well within sustainable range, thanks to the prudent management of the economy by President John Evans Atta Mills' Economic Management Team.

'It is that prudence that has achieved for Ghana within two years the macro-economic feats that the NPP struggled to achieve in vain for eight long years,' the statement noted.

The state-owned Ghanaian Times published a story of a 54-year-old teacher who was flogged publicly by the chief of the town where he teaches for allegedly smoking cannabis in public.

The story, under the headline “Chief canes teacher”, said Francis Kattah, a French teacher, was subjected to 25 lashes by the chief in the presence of students of the school.

The incident occurred at the chief's palace after Mr. Kattah and five others were summoned to answer charges of smoking cannabis at a drinking spot.

He said despite pleading innocent, the chief ordered him to lie down and flogged him with four canes tied together in the presence of his students. He said he felt humiliated by the chief's conduct.

The action of the chief angered teachers in the municipality, who boycotted classes to protest the maltreatment of their colleague.

The chief has, meanwhile, been charged in court with assault and threat to life.

Pana 03/07/2011