'No guinea fowl flew to Burkina Faso' - Mahama reacts to SADA scandal

John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has dismissed claims that guinea fowls from the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) project flew to Burkina Faso during his presidency in 2014.

In 2014, SADA's management faced scrutiny when reports emerged that guinea fowls from the initiative had migrated to neighbouring Burkina Faso. Addressing the media in Bolgatanga at the conclusion of his tour of the Upper East Region, Mahama refuted these allegations.

Mahama clarified that the project was misunderstood by the public. Contrary to popular belief that the birds were to be reared in a single, enclosed area, the initiative was actually an incubation process. The day-old chicks were intended to be distributed to farmers for rearing.

He criticised the media for spreading misinformation without thoroughly understanding the project. “No guinea fowl flew to Burkina Faso. Guinea fowls are not migratory birds and the project was not for you to come and see thousands of guinea fowls in one place. It was supposed to incubate the eggs and give the guinea fowls’ day-old chicks to farmers,” Mahama explained, as reported by citinewsroom.com.

“And so somebody came and asked the watchman, ‘where are the guinea fowls?’ And the watchman said, ‘they go Burkina Faso, they go come back in the rainy season.’ The media went and published it. And after that, there are people who believe that there were some guinea fowls that flew to Burkina Faso. So that project died. But I think it is a project we can look at again,” he added.

Mahama also mentioned that there was a comprehensive plan for the mature guinea fowls to be processed and transported to market centres across the country. “There was supposed to be a processing plant so that the guinea fowls would be bought off the households and processed. And they would put them in frozen trucks to send them down to the south to the market. Unfortunately, the project ran into issues. The media criticised it, and they came and said the guinea fowls had flown to Burkina Faso,” he said.

He emphasised the need to revisit and properly understand such development projects to avoid misinformation and ensure their success. Mahama's clarifications aim to dispel myths and highlight the importance of accurate reporting.

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