By Seli Baisie
American-Ghanaian actor and comedian, Michael Blackson has expressed regret over his past criticisms of Ghana, clarifying that his frustration stemmed from the handling of his $1.2 million investment in the country’s domestic debt exchange programme (DDEP).
In an interview with VladTV on February 15, 2025, Blackson alleged that funds he invested in Ghana’s Eurobond market were misappropriated by the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration to service foreign debts, including those owed to China.
“I apologize for blaming my problem on Ghana; Ghana is not the problem. It’s usually the people that are in office that are the problem. So the particular Ministry of Finance from the NPP regime, you know we have Democrats and Republicans here, in Ghana the big ones are NPP and NDC.
“This particular time, NPP was in office, so they are the ones to be blamed for it, not Ghana. Ghana is a great country, with great people. I apologize to my country Ghana for what I said, but I blame it on the NPP, the Ministry of Finance, and the people of that regime,” he said.
The comedian, who has invested heavily in philanthropic projects in Ghana, said he initially considered paying an alleged bribe to retrieve his money but ultimately chose to wait.
“I had a guy from the government who told me he could get my money back, but he wanted 10%,” he said. “I spoke to a bank manager, and she advised me to wait because they were figuring things out.”
However, two years later, Blackson claims he is yet to receive his funds, despite the government offering debt restructuring options. He explained that investors were given two choices: either lose 37% of their investment and receive a reduced interest rate or keep the full amount but wait 15 years for repayment with a significantly lower interest rate.
Frustrated by the ordeal, Blackson took to social media to voice his concerns, a move he believes contributed to the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 elections.
“My Twitter rants probably helped NPP to lose the 2024 election,” he said.
Despite his frustrations, Blackson says he still believes in Ghana’s potential and intends to engage the new National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration in hopes of resolving the matter.
“I’m going to talk to the new leader and explain why I did this,” he said.
Watch the full interview below;
