The Ghana Museums and Monuments Board has said the Christiansborg Castle, popularly known as the Osu Castle is not a security installation but rather a museum.

In the statement signed by the Acting Executive Director, Kingsley Ofosu Ntiamoah, the Board said the former seat of government now has a similar status like the Elmina and Cape Coast Castles backing government’s response that the facility is not a security zone but was being transformed into a museum.

This denial comes on the back of a Joy News documentary which revealed how a pro-New Patriotic Party militia group is being trained at the Osu-based Castle.

The documentary questioned why the facility which was supposed to be a security zone was being used for such purposes.

The undercover work carried out by Manasseh Azure Awuni disclosed how a former bodyguard of President Akufo-Addo led the training of the militia group, De-Eye, on the grounds of public property.

Operating for the past two years, the journalist found that the group had already provided security for a number of party functions which the president had been present.

Government has already denied that the Castle is a security zone.

Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said, “Indeed it is a facility operated by the Museums and Monuments Board, after President Akufo-Addo, on March 5, 2017, tasked the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture to spearhead its transformation into a museum.

“The general public may refer to news items of March 5, 2017, the date on which President Akufo-Addo gave that directive,” the statement added.

The Board said “on March 5, 2017, the President of the Republic Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo publicly declared and inaugurated the Osu Castle as a Presidential Museum of Leadership and governance.

“The Osu Castle has since this act, above stated, by the President of the Republic, has and to date remains a museum,” the statement said.

This information was retrieved from www.ghanamuseums.org

However, Joy News’ check on the Board’s website on March 11, 2019, at 5 pm does not show the Christianborg Castle as one of the country’s numerous museums.

Below is a copy of the full statement: