The National Peace Council has rejected claims that its activities are dictated by politicians.

The Chairman of the Council, Rev. Professor Emmanuel Asante, said the selection of members and the appointment of the Chairperson are all done solely by selected “religious bodies and other institutions.”

“There is no way anybody can influence the Catholic Bishops Conference, the Christian Council, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission, and Practitioners of African Traditional Religion etc,” he said.

Claims by outgoing Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev. Professor Emmanuel Martey, that there was an attempt to bribe him by a politician with the sum of $100,000, a 4x4 SUV and a house fitted with swimming pool have

drawn severe criticisms.

Most of these criticisms have taken a dead aim at the National Peace Council because Rev. Martey was nominated unto the Board but later dropped.

The issue reached a fever pitch when Rev. Martey said the Deputy Interior Minister, James Agalga, texted him to lobby for the Chairmanship of the Council but he rejected the offer with the help of the “Holy Spirit.”

The Interior Ministry has described claims by the controversial clergyman as “inaccurate statements.”

A statement signed by the Minister Prosper Bani on Monday, challenged Rev Martey to prove the alleged text message to authenticate his claim.

At a news conference held in Accra Tuesday, Rev Asante said even though Rev Martey was nominated unto the Board his withdrawal was not announced until it was inaugurated by the President.

He says per the Constitution in Article 70 the President is mandated to appoint the Chairperson of the Council but he did not exercise that power.

“What happened was that it is the Board that elected the Chairperson,” he said, adding, “There were processes that we went through without influence from any other person.”

According to him, since the President inaugurated the Board and its Chairperson it is assumed he nominated them.

 Source: myjoyonline.com