Former President John Mahama has joined the many persons who have questioned the plausibility of government’s announcement of an attempted coup in Ghana.

Speaking at the 13th Annual Residential Congress of the National Health Students Association at Korle-bu on Thursday, he led his audience in a laughing expedition.

Mr Mahama claimed that the supposed weapons used to overthrow the government and subsequent social media commentary shows that Ghanaians still have a great sense of humour.

“There was this challenge going on of people showing possible weapons that can be used in a coup d’etat.

“There was this one that was very intriguing because this was the wooden spatula that is used to stir ‘banku’ popularly called ‘Bankuta’….and I said well, possibly; that can be used to hit the guy at wherever you are going to attack, he may fall unconscious,” he mocked.

In a recent statement, the government said a joint security operation has led to the retrieval of several arms, explosive devices and ammunition from locations in Accra and Kpone-Bawaleshie in Dodowa.

The Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah disclosed that the operation was to neutralise an elaborate plot targeted at the Presidency, and with the ultimate aim of destabilising the country.

The arrest and ongoing prosecution of a medical doctor, Frederick Yao Mac-Palm and his accomplices Dornyah “Ezor” Kafui (a local weapon manufacturer) and Bright Allan Debrah Ofosu (aka BB or ADC) a freight manager has led to trivialisation of the operation by the public.

The public has cast doubt on the possibility of a medical doctor using basic weapons such as kitchen knives and locally manufactured guns including bow and arrow to destabilise a country like Ghana.  

Speaking in a lighthearted manner about the development, former President Mahama said that he never knew that, even “bentua” [anema] can be used as a weapon in a coup plot.

Watch the following video for the full submission of the former president.