Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has fired his junior finance minister over corruption allegations made in an upcoming documentary on illegal gold mining.
The president has “terminated the appointment of the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr Charles Boahen, with immediate effect,” he said in a statement.
The fallout from the expose by a well-known investigative journalist comes as the government is under pressure over a faltering economy and lawmakers push Akufo-Addo to fire Finance Minister Kenneth Ofori-Atta.
The presidency’s statement said Akufo-Addo’s decision came after “being made aware of the allegations” against Boahen in the documentary “Galamsey Economy,” which is scheduled to be released on Monday.
Akufo-Addo also referred the case to prosecutors for further investigation.
Teasers from the expose show Boahen in what the documentary claims are images of him trying to demand $200,000 from potential investors to give to the vice president to allow them to do business.
Galamsey is a local Ghanaian phrase referring to the illegal or unregulated, small-scale gold mining operations.
Boahen has not commented on the allegations made in the teasers.
