Veteran journalist Kweku Baako has urged Senior minister Yaw Osafo Maafo to apologise for comments suggesting government a powerful Chinese illegal miner was not prosecuted for commercial interest.

Mr. Baako observed the minister’s continuous silence as public bashing enters week three is chipping away at his integrity.

He said on JoyNews’ news analysis show Newsfile Saturday, government is “walking a tight rope” since his comments made in the UK during government’s Town Hall Meeting, with Ghanaians abroad, went viral.

The former Finance minister said prosecuting Aisha Huang linked who was heavily involved in illegal mining and other crimes, is “not going to solve your economic problems”.

“It is not going to make you happy or me happy, that's not important, the most important thing is that she has been deported from Ghana...", he said on Sunday April 14, 2019

He asked Ghanaians to focus on the economic benefits of Ghana’s diplomatic engagement with China expected to be seen in the provision of infrastructure worth $2bn.

Critics, individual and corporate, have lined up to condemn him and the government while calls for his resignation is simmering on social media.

Mr. Baako who is Editor-In-Chief of the New Crusading Guide last week on Newsfile, condemned Osafo Maafo. But any expectation that the comments and subsequent bashing will die a quick death in the media has been dashed.

“Why we back to these issues?” the veteran journalist sized up another invitation to comment on the controversy.

He said it’s because the Senior minister has not taken advantage of the potential of an apology and retraction to quell the condemnation blitz.

Although a Facebook post of the Senior minister tried to bring some clarification it did more to keep the criticisms coming than going away.

Kweku Baako said if the minister, highly ranked within the government, keeps his silence and his sorry further “it may eventually make an apology look redundant” when it does come.