Former Spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, Kwasi Kwarteng, has strongly refuted what he describes as a malicious and defamatory publication by The Fourth Estate regarding the Free Wi-Fi for Schools project. In a statement dated November 6, 2025, Kwarteng accused the media outlet of misrepresenting the 2024 Auditor-General’s report to create a false impression of wrongdoing during his time at the Ministry. He explained that the report had been deliberately twisted to suggest that the Ministry paid GHS 56 million to Busy Internet for no work done, an allegation he insists is false and misleading. According to him, the Auditor-General’s document simply provided an accounting record of payments made between February 2020 and October 2023, not evidence of any irregularity or corruption.
Kwarteng clarified that the payments made to Busy Internet were guided by existing contractual provisions, service-level agreements, and invoice-vetting procedures, ensuring all disbursements were properly verified before approval. He said that despite the Ministry’s earlier clarifications on the matter, The Fourth Estate ignored those details and published a misleading story designed to draw public attention. He further described the report as an attempt to personalise an institutional issue and distort facts for sensational headlines.
He also criticised the publication for using his image in relation to a contract that predated his tenure as Spokesperson, describing it as politically motivated and damaging to his reputation. Kwarteng stressed that the report in question did not accuse any official of personal misconduct but rather highlighted systemic monitoring challenges that the Ministry was already working to address.
He urged The Fourth Estate and other journalists to uphold fairness, accuracy, and integrity in their reporting, reminding them that the public deserves truth and context, not manipulated figures and exaggerated headlines. He maintained that misleading journalism weakens public trust in credible media and undermines the progress being made in the education sector.
The former Spokesperson concluded by reaffirming his commitment to transparency and accountability in public service, encouraging media houses to prioritise factual reporting over sensationalism.
