The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Stephen Asamoah Boateng has stated that those who did not turn up for the award did not make the award ceremony lose any flavour. Speaking on Ekosii Sen on Asempa FM on Thursday Mr. Asamoah Boateng said if the nation wants to honour people for their effort in building the nation and some of them choose to reject it, they cannot be forced to reverse their decisions. According to him, if those who couldn’t turn up for their awards come forward to explain their absence and it is reasonable, they could be considered. He said it was worrying that the flag-bearer of the National Democratic Congress Prof. John Atta Mills who earlier indicated during his encounter at the IEA presidential debates that he would accept the award eventually rejected it. But the Communications Director for Prof. Mills, Koku Anyidoho rejected claims that his boss said at the IEA meeting that he would accept the award. He challenged the Information and National Orientation Minister to listen to the tape and find out if Professor Mills made such a statement. He said he would resign as the Communication Director for Professor Mills if there was such information made by the Professor at the Institute of Economic Affairs encounter.