Three residents of Ashaiman Lebanon Zone two have been brought before the Ashaiman District Court for allegedly assaulting Augustine Nyalali Ahiagbor, a journalist working with Angel FM/TV.
The accused individuals are Abass Mohammed, a 24-year-old national service person, Seth Kwame Baidoo, a 39-year-old civil engineer, and Samuel Yaw Baidoo, a 70-year-old pensioner.
They have pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and causing unlawful conduct, as stipulated under Section 54 and Section 152, respectively, of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
Presiding over the case, Mr. Derick Parden Eshun, granted the accused bail in the amount of GH¢10,000 each, with one surety for each accused person, subject to justification.
Furthermore, the court has referred the case for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and adjourned the proceedings to August 10, 2023.
According to the prosecution’s account, on May 25, 2023, at approximately 06:10 hours, a toilet facility at Mohammed’s father’s house collapsed, resulting in a tenant being trapped inside in Ashaiman Lebanon Zone two.
It was revealed that at around 07:10 hours, the journalist received information about the incident and went to the scene, where he encountered another journalist.
Upon the journalist’s arrival, the trapped individual had already been rescued, and some residents were attempting to transport him to the hospital for medical attention.
During this time, the complainant began recording videos and taking pictures of the collapsed toilet structure.
However, Yaw Baidoo approached him, grabbed his shirt, and demanded that he delete the recorded material while physically assaulting him.
Subsequently, approximately 10 other individuals joined in and insisted that the journalist delete the videos and pictures, subjecting him to further assault.
The accused parties allegedly engaged in a struggle with the journalist over his mobile phone, resulting in damage to the device. Additionally, they tore his shirt and singlet.
The prosecution stated that the local Assembly member, who was present at the scene and served as a witness, took possession of the complainant’s phone.
Both the Assembly member and the complainant then proceeded to the residences of Yaw Baidoo and Kwame Baidoo, intending to delete the recorded material.
However, they were unable to do so due to the phone’s damage.
Following the incident, the journalist lodged a complaint at the Lebanon Police Station, where a medical form was issued to him.
Subsequently, the accused individuals were arrested, investigated, and subsequently arraigned in court.
The husband of a National Democratic Congress (NDC) party supporter who tragically lost her life in an accident while en route to a campaign activity ahead of the Assin North by-election, Yaw Sarfo, is calling on constituents to ensure his wife’s death is not in vain.
Speaking to the media, Yaw Sarfo urged all constituents in the area to turn out in large numbers and cast their votes for James Gyakye Quayson, as his wife was on her way to campaign for him when the accident occurred.
Expressing his grief, Yaw Sarfo emphasized that his wife’s passing was a direct consequence of her involvement in the NDC campaign and appealed to the community not to forget her sacrifice.
In light of the tragic incident, he issued a warning to all party supporters, urging them to exercise extra caution during the campaign period.
Yaw Sarfo recounted that his wife was working on their farm when she received news of former President John Dramani Mahama‘s visit to the Assin North Constituency for the campaign. She promptly halted her work, changed into her party shirt, and joined the others on a party pick-up from Assin Dansame to Assin Bereku.
Tragically, the vehicle experienced a tyre burst, resulting in the fatal accident that claimed his wife’s life.
Despite the immense loss, Yaw Sarfo remained hopeful that a victory for the NDC candidate would contribute to a brighter future for the children left behind.
“We were here when we heard that former President John Dramani Mahama was on his way to pay the chiefs a courtesy call. So my wife joined them. Unfortunately, I received a call informing me that my wife had died in an accident involving the car they were riding in. I’m pleading with constituents to be cautious so that this does not happen again. I would also use this opportunity to urge voters to vote massively for the NDC candidate in order for him to win and come to my children’s aid.”
The heartfelt plea serves as a reminder of the profound impact political activities can have on individuals and their families, underscoring the importance of safe campaign practices and the need to honour those who have sacrificed their lives in the pursuit of their political beliefs.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the ruling of the High Court that the criminal case against the ousted Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson, should be heard daily.
According to the former president, the ruling of the court is absurd because not even murderers are prosecuted at this pace.
Mahama, who made these remarks at a community durbar at Sienkyem in Assin North on June 18, 2023, added that not even the prosecution of the former boss of MenzGold, Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1), who is accused of swindling Ghanaians, is done at this pace.
“Because of the hatred for him (Gyakye Quayson), they have also taken him to court and they are saying that they are going to jail him.
“Now the court is saying that he should come to court every day. Not even criminals who have committed murder are treated this way. Murders are not told to come to court every day for their case to be heard.
“NAM1’s case has been in court for almost 3 three years. This case is not even heard on a daily basis. What has Gyakye done to you? Has he killed someone? Has he stolen someone’s money?” he asked in Twi.
The former president added that even if Quayson is detained by the court, he will still win the by-election which would be held on June 27, 2023.
“They can get him a mat at the court for him to sleep there. Even if he is not present on the day of the by-election, he will still win,” Mahama said.
The High Court in Accra, on Friday (June 18, 2023), ruled that the ongoing criminal trial of ousted Assin North Member of Parliament, James Gyakye Quayson, will be heard daily starting from Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
This was after the presiding judge, Justice Mary Maame Ekue Yanzuh, turned down an application for the trial to be adjourned till after the by-election.
The Court has since fixed June 20, 21, and 23 for the trial to continue.
Quayson was recently ousted from parliament after the Supreme Court of Ghana ruled that he was ineligible to contest in the 2020 parliamentary election because he failed to renounce his Canadian citizenship in time.
But there is still one case the former MP has to face in court after the Office of the Attorney General accused him of deceiving public officers to acquire state documents.
On February 12, 2022, the State charged James Gyakye Quayson with five counts; deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.
Former President John Dramani Mahama and Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyir, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, have both expressed their concerns about the upcoming internal elections of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
Mr. Annoh-Dompreh, who serves as the Majority Chief Whip, has emphasized the importance of conducting the campaigns in a civil manner and has urged all flagbearer aspirants to refrain from engaging in character assassination.
Annoh-Dompreh emphasized that the focus should be on the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and ensuring that Former President John Dramani Mahama does not have any chance of returning to the presidency.
During an interview on TV3, Annoh-Dompreh, who is campaigning for Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia to become the NPP’s flagbearer, expressed the importance of maintaining discipline within the party’s caucus.
He stated, “There is a lot of discipline in our caucus. You cannot openly campaign on our platform, and if you do, I will remove you from the MPs’ WhatsApp platform.”
Annoh-Dompreh further explained that the Members of Parliament (MPs) understand the need to secure victory in their constituencies and highlighted the bigger goal of preventing John Mahama from assuming the presidency again.
He stressed, “Our problem now is the NDC, not ourselves. We must not let John Mahama come close to the presidency because of his legacies. That is where our focus lies, not on ourselves.”
The Nsawam Adoagyiri lawmaker emphasized that it is the opportune time for Dr. Bawumia to lead the NPP.
He noted the significance of timing in politics and leadership, drawing a parallel with the recent US presidential election. Annoh-Dompreh stated, “This is not Alan’s time; this is Dr. Bawumia’s time. Politics is about seasons and timing. If you’re not careful, you can get it wrong. Look at the US and Biden’s journey. Today, he is the president.”
While acknowledging his respect for all aspirants vying for leadership within the NPP, Annoh-Dompreh expressed confidence in Dr. Bawumia’s potential success.
He asserted, “If the primaries are conducted, Dr. Bawumia will win. Alan cannot defeat Bawumia. I am not new to this game; I have been involved in grassroots mobilization. I can sense and feel a victory coming. Even in the special delegates’ conference, Dr. Bawumia will not secure less than 70 percent of the votes. We have done our work, and grassroots support will be even stronger.”
A member of the legal team of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Abraham Amaliba, has said that former President John Dramani Mahama has not received any lawsuit challenging his candidacy for the 2024 elections.
Court documents leaked on social media indicated that the former president, who was recently elected by the NDC to be its candidate for the 2024 presidential elections, had been sued over his eligibility to contest in the next presidential election.
The suit was filed by one Kenneth Kwabena Agyei Kuranchie, who wants the Supreme Court of Ghana to disqualify the former president from contesting as a flagbearer of a political party or the presidency in the future.
According to him, the constitution through Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution indicates that a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president but former President Mahama is seeking to recontest after being out of office for about 8 years.
Reacting to this in an interview on Metro TV, on Wednesday, June 13, 2023, lawyer Amaliba said that the suit is ‘much ado about nothing’.
According to him, the suit is just to divert the attention of Ghanaians from the current economic hardship in the country and his being championed by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.
“The former president has not been served and once serving is personal, they would have to take steps to serve him. What I can tell you is that absolutely nothing can stop the former president from contesting in the 2024 elections.
“This whole suit is a diversionary tactic. There is nowhere in the constitution that says that the former president cannot stand. I see this suit as legal gymnastics, I see this suit as a legal somersault… to stop the former president from contesting but nothing stops him from contesting,” he said.
He added that the NDC and the former president are not worried about the suit and are currently focused on winning the upcoming Assin North by-election.
Former President, John Dramani Mahama has been sued by a Ghanaian citizen over his bid to vie for a second presidential term on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
In the suit filed by the Plaintiff; Kenneth Kwabena Agyei Kuranchie, he wants the Supreme Court to disqualify the former president from contesting as a flagbearer of a political party or the presidency in the future.
According to him, the constitution through Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution indicates that a person seeking a second presidential term must be a sitting president and in the case of former President Mahama, he is only seeking to recontest after being out of office for about 8 years.
He also noted that per the provision in the constitution, a former president seeking re-election must seek parliamentary approval before going on with his ambitions.
The Plaintiff in the suit also indicated a number of things he wants as reliefs: He wants the court to order the former president to fully disclose to parliament, the terms of his engagement as a flagbearer of the NDC.
Mr. Agyei Kuranchie is also seeking that the Supreme Court directs the Speaker of Parliament to invoke and operationationalise Article 68 (2) of the 1992 Constitution which indicates that
[The President shall not, on leaving office as President, hold any office of profit or emolument, except with the permission of Parliament, in any establishment, either directly or indirectly, other than that of the State].
The Plaintiff is also seeking for the court to order Former President, John Agyekum Kufuor and Former President John Dramani Mahama to make available to parliament, all engagaments not to do with the matters of the State of Ghana.
He also wants the court to order Mr. mahama to seek parliamentary approval for his engagement as a Flagbearer of the NDC or in the alternative, desist from his presidential ambitions.
Meanwhile, Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution says;
(1) A person elected as President shall, subject to clause (3) of this article, hold office for a term of four years beginning from the date on which he is sworn in as President.
Article 68 (2) of the 1992 Constitution says;
(2) The President shall not, on leaving office as President, hold any office of profit or emolument, except with the permission of Parliament, in any establishment, either directly or indirectly, other than that of the State.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, has refuted claims that the opposition NDC and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) are similar.
In Mr Mahama’s view, the NDC cannot be reckless, contemptuous and wasteful as the NPP.
“We have been in power, and our record is there for all to see. We do not claim perfection, but we in the NDC can never be like the NPP. We simply cannot be and are not as reckless and contemptuous of the people of Ghana as the NPP has been. We have never been and will not be as wasteful, ostentatious, and as imprudent as the NPP has been.”
Speaking in an address at the NDC’s European Chapters Conference in Amsterdam, Holland over the weekend, Mr Mahama said the NDC has no intention of taking the mandate of Ghanaians for granted if the party wins the 2024 election.
“We have no intention of taking the mandate of the people of Ghana for granted. We know we are going against an incumbent government that has proven that it is prepared to shed the blood of its citizens to hang on to power, as they amply showed at the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election and the 2020 elections. And then there is an Electoral Commission whose neutrality in this electoral contest is questionable.
“Our work is therefore cut out for us. We must get off our marks immediately and convince Ghanaians that we are prepared to govern in addition to our superior record to that of the NPP.”
Below are details of the speech by Mr Mahama
General Secretary Fifi Kwetey,
Director of International Relations Alex Segbefia,
Chairpersons of our various NDC EU Chapters, Comrades,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good afternoon.
Let me first thank you all, both theChapterand Branch executives and members from our various EU countries, for making the sacrifice and time to gather here in Amsterdam for three days to discuss the future of our party, the NDC, and how we can contribute towards an emphatic victory in December 2024.
You have rescheduled this conference twice because of other competing events, including the just-ended May 13 Presidential Primaries. I appreciate your patience with me, especially because of your determination that I must be personally present with you.
We were close to rescheduling this session once more because of the impending Assin North by-election. But it is good we decided to come and push ahead with this event, as this is also a significant gathering for strategising towards victory in the polls of 2024.
Comrades, I bring you greetings from your compatriots in Ghana, whom I had the privilege, yet again, to visit and interact with across all 276 constituencies during the primaries.
That exercise has contributed to re-invigorating our executives and members at the grassroots. It allowed us to take our message to them and the people in their constituencies, reminding them that the National Democratic Congress remains the political party to trust when it comes to the total development and welfare of the citizens of Ghana.
It is, therefore, our duty to rededicate ourselves to work with absolute commitment in our branches to secure the maximum votes to guarantee an emphatic victory in 2024. I want to repeat that we must go to the polls on December 07, 2024, with our referee. That referee will be our DILIGENCE, PREPAREDNESS and WINNING the election EMPHATICALLY.
Our 2020 election comeback, raising the number of our seats from 106 to 137 and increasing our votes by almost 1.4 million, resulted from the dedication and hard work of all of us and the support of the people of Ghana.
Ghanaians have seen the difference and believe in our message, which in 2020 was conveyed in our People’s Manifesto.
Comrades, we did not become the majority party in Parliament. We were also not declared winners of the 2020 presidential elections because we left some loose ends untied in a bizarre election amidst the COVID restrictions and the economic meltdown. That is why in 2024, our win must be emphatic.
As leader and flagbearer, I offer my firm PLEDGE and assurance. I will work with the party’s leadership, represented here by the General Secretary, to build a formidable team and deploy strategies and mechanisms to ensure that we protect the votes of the teeming mass of Ghanaians. These Ghanaians are yearning to be freed from the shackles of poverty and hardship inflicted by the reckless Akufo Addo and Bawumia administrations. Most Ghanaians are ready to work with us to build the Ghana we all want together.
When I spoke at the commemoration of the 44th anniversary of the June 4th uprising in Hohoe on Sunday, I likened the 2024 elections to a peaceful and democratic revolution which will free our country and our people from the clutches of misrule from a mediocre, reckless, and incompetent government.
What we are gathered here to do is a declaration of intent by those of you in the diaspora to join the broad mass of Ghanaians in the collective push to dislodge this clueless administration through a peaceful, free, and fair election in 2024. This is an absolute national imperative, and we cannot and must not fail the people of Ghana.
It has been seven years of corruption, waste, arrogance, nepotism, abuse of office, human rights violations, and economic mismanagement. Seven years of reckless mismanagement of the economy has rendered our people broken and struggling to survive from one day to the next.
The Ghanaian economy is now classified among the worst managed in the world. We are currently in the same basket as the likes of Sri Lanka.
Ghana, our beloved country? Nkrumah’s Ghana?
Inflation is at record highs – impacting the prices of essential goods and services and escalating an already severe cost of living crisis. Our currency, the Ghana Cedi, has suffered one of its steepest declines in decades. This has earned the Cedi the depressing accolade, at one point, as the worst-performing currency in the world.
Businesses are stressed and being pushed to the brink, with quite a number left with no choice but to fold up or relocate to neighbouring countries. The Bank of Ghana has exacerbated the problem. It has blatantly breached its financial threshold, printing over 40 billion Ghana cedis to finance the government’s budget deficit.
In the last two years, we have suffered downgrade after downgrade to junk status by all the international credit rating agencies, and we have finally defaulted on our domestic and external debt repayment. The unilateral, insensitive debt restructuring programme has seen over GHS 80 billion lent by millions of Ghanaians to the government by purchasing bonds expropriated.
This has caused severe dislocation in the livelihoods of many pensioners and middle-class Ghanaian families. It has led to a depressing sight of aged pensioners picketing at the Ministry of Finance to demand their money. Local businesses, especially contractors and other government service providers are owed tens of billions of Ghana cedis, whose value continues to dwindle following the government’s inability or unwillingness to pay.
Government can also not meet all statutory payments, and many of the earmarked funds are in arrears. Even the most fundamental obligations, such as providing textbooks to primary schools or ensuring proper and consistent feeding of basic and senior high school students, have become daunting. The net effect of all these harrowing developments has been that Ghanaians are enduring economic suffering on an unprecedented scale.
I am certain that you are all too familiar with the precise narrative I have just rendered for those of you in the diaspora on whom millions of your relatives and compatriots back home depend for sustenance through remittances. All this would have been entirely avoidable if this government had heeded sound counsel from us in the opposition and other notable voices in civil society and academia and acted timeously.
The deliberate concealment of the actual situation through creative accounting and under-declaration of figures has combined with excessive and wasteful expenditure to hasten the inevitable catastrophe we are witnessing today.
Ultimately, too little was done too late, as our economy had so deteriorated that an IMF programme could only be secured by accepting the harshest conditionalities. To obtain an IMF programme, Ghanaians have paid a disproportionate price. Domestic bondholders have been given severe and painful haircuts and will be deprived of substantial interest due to them in 2023.
The consequences of these haircuts are grave for the financial sector. The financial health of Ghanaian banks has eroded and will undermine the financial sector’s performance with attendant job losses.
Insurance companies and pension funds invested in government bonds will also suffer, just as individuals who depend on pension payments for survival will suffer.
In addition to this already hostile economic environment, multiple taxes have been slapped on Ghanaians in the last two years alone. Over 23 other tax measures will make life even more unbearable for our people. Steep increases in the cost of utilities are increasing the burden on businesses and individuals.
Import duties and excise duties have shot through the roof. No wonder the Tema and Takoradi Ports have lost volumes while the Togo and Benin ports continue to be busy and receiving goods that should have come through our ports.
Ladies and gentlemen, one of the burning topics for discussion in Ghana today is the rate at which we are losing our (health) professionals, trained at great expense, to other countries.
I sympathise with the Ghanaian youth! Their feeling of despair and hopelessness is unprecedented in our history. They are now looking for the slightest opportunity to leave our shores in search of greener pastures.
The question we should ask ourselves is, how will we bring back HOPE in the Ghanaians in the face of their daily challenges? As the most viable alternative, we in the NDC have demonstrated the capacity to rise to the occasion by our record in government. In the past, we have reset our country’s trajectory and returned it to an appreciable state of health. We have a duty to our country to lead the charge for change again and bring relief to the long-suffering people of Ghana.
Comrades, it would be presumptuous to think that this will come quickly or that the abysmal depths to which the NPP has sunk governance guarantees us automatic victory at the polls. We must first earn the trust of the Ghanaian people.
A significant section of voters has grown sceptical and are weary of our democracy and its benefits because of unmet expectations and the spectacular failure of this government.
I urge you all to remember, through our actions and the policy platforms to canvass, demonstrate the difference between our service in government and the nightmarish example the NPP has set.
We have been in power, and our record is there for all to see. We do not claim perfection, but we in the NDC can never be like the NPP. We simply cannot be and are not as reckless and contemptuous of the people of Ghana as the NPP has been. We have never been and will not be as wasteful, ostentatious, and as imprudent as the NPP has been.
We have committed to operating a lean government that avoids the NPP’s extravagance and gets the job done more efficiently. Nothing in our historical record compares to the level of economic mismanagement that the NPP has superintended.
The NDC believes in substantive offerings, carefully considered, and curated to stand the test of time while comprehensively resolving some of our most complex problems.
We have no intention of taking the mandate of the people of Ghana for granted. We know we are going against an incumbent government that has proven that it is prepared to shed the blood of its citizens to hang on to power, as they amply showed at the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election and the 2020 elections. And then there is an Electoral Commission whose neutrality in this electoral contest is questionable.
Our work is therefore cut out for us. We must get off our marks immediately and convince Ghanaians that we are prepared to govern in addition to our superior record to that of the NPP.
The first step towards doing that is proving that we can manage our internal affairs, which is why this European Conference is significant. It offers a platform for sharing unique insights into better organisational strategies and innovative approaches to mobilising the people of Ghana for a resounding victory in 2024.
The NDC profoundly values your contributions towards the running of the party and the brilliant perspectives you bring to the table on essential governance matters. The party also acknowledges your concerns about participation in elections and governance.
Of particular concern to you have been the constitutional impediments to persons holding dual citizenship and their occupation of some government positions in Ghana. Only a few weeks ago, we suffered what we consider grave injustice when our Member of Parliament for Assin North was thrown out of Parliament by the Supreme Court on grounds we find entirely unsatisfactory.
I have previously indicated that one of the things I will do when elected President in 2024 would be to fast-track the clarification of the constitutional provision on allegiance that bars our dual citizens from holding some offices in Ghana. I call on Parliament to do the needful so that Ghana can benefit fully from the expertise that our citizens have garnered during their sojourn abroad.
Another matter which I know concerns you and on which I would like to offer some clarity concerning the NDC’s position is ROPAA. We in the NDC have not been opposed to ROPAA in principle. We have kicked against the potential for selective and inequitable implementation that lends itself to exploitation by the incumbent party and to the unfair detriment of opposition parties.
We have said that if ROPAA is ever to be implemented, it should be implemented for every Ghanaian living everywhere. As far as we are concerned, a Ghanaian living in Europe should not have a greater right to vote than one living in Asia or Africa.
We in the NDC will not countenance an attempt or conspiracy between the NPP and the Electoral Commission to implement a lopsided ROPAA favouring the NPP. When we see that a level playing field will be created for all Ghanaians anywhere on earth to have the right to vote, we will be more than willing to support such a move.
We continue to value your contributions to the development of Ghana even as life’s vicissitudes have ensured that you reside in far and distant lands to either ply your trade and earn a living or pursue some form of personal development.
I am confident that the deliberations, which started yesterday, will ultimately inure to the benefit of the NDC and provide further impetus to our preparations to salvage the fortunes of our country, which are presently in great peril. We back at home are doing our bit as well and strengthening the cooperation between the national and external branches of the party.
Comrades, our meeting today, June 10, coincides with the 33rd anniversary of the formation of our great party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC). Congratulations to the founding fathers and mothers of our party and to us all who continue to build and hold the party aloft across the almost 40,000 branches.
We acknowledge all our lost comrades in the struggle, and especially our Founder, Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings (Rtd.), former President Professor John Evans Atta Mills and former Vice President Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur.
Later this month, the 29th, is the memorial of the late Amissah-Arthur, and we will be joining the family at an event to remember his work and contributions to building a Better Ghana.
On July 24th, we will celebrate the memory of the late Asomdwehene, as we always do, and I intend on that day as part of the commemoration to remind Ghanaians of his contribution to Ghana in various forms and how we can learn from him to step-up the development of the country, in the wake of the depths the NPP has sunk us.
Together with his family, the people of Keta and Anlo and the larger NDC family, we must, and I will host a gathering in November to celebrate the memory of our late Founder, Jerry Rawlings, in his native Keta.
I thank you for your kind attention.
I wish everyone a successful congress.
God bless the NDC, and God bless our homeland Ghana.
Former President John Dramani Mahama, the flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), convened a meeting with the party’s sitting Members of Parliament who were unsuccessful in their re-election bids during the parliamentary primary held on May 13, 2023.
The gathering was attended by key figures within the NDC, including Fifi Kwetey, the General Secretary of the party, the leadership of the Minority Caucus in Parliament, Julius Debrah, a former Chief of Staff, and Prof. Joshua Alabi, the Convener of the John Mahama 2024 Primary Campaign.
Also present were the 17 sitting MPs who lost their re-election bid and will not be contesting on the party’s ticket in the upcoming 2024 general election.
Among them were notable individuals such as Alhaji A.B.A Fuseini, the MP for Sagnarigu, Mrs. Della Sowah, the MP for Kpando, Edward Bawa, the MP for Bongo, and Wisdom Gidisu, the MP for Krachi East.
Additional MPs in attendance included Angela Alorwu-Tay of Afadzato South, Kobena Mensah Woyome of South Tongu, Alex Adomako of Sekyere Afram Plains, Abeiku Crentsil of Ekumfi, and Albert Alasoka of Garu,Dr. Kwabena Donkor of Pru East.
The purpose of the meeting was to provide support, boost morale, and foster a sense of solidarity among the defeated MPs.
John Mahama’s presence aimed to convey his appreciation for their dedication and service to the party while reassuring them of their continued importance within the NDC’s ranks.
By acknowledging their contributions and offering encouragement, the meeting underscored the NDC’s commitment to maintaining a strong and united front as they prepare for 2024 elections.
Koku Anyidoho, the former Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has claimed that less than 48 hours after the death of former President John Evans Atta-Mills, president John Mahama asked him to vacate the presidency citing his inability to work with him.
Speaking in an interview with Atinka TV on June 1, 2023, Koku Anyidoho detailed a phone call he received a day after the passing of President Mills.
According to him, someone called him to inquire about his well-being but he didn’t trust the call due to his discerning spirit.
“Prof died on 24 July 2012, on the 26 of July in the morning around 6 am…so let’s say less than 48 hours I got a call from one of these people, the person asks Koku how are you? then I replied I’m fine but I didn’t trust the call…because God has given me some discerning spirit so when the call came in and I saw it, I knew it wasn’t genuine.”
Koku Anyidoho added that immediately after the first caller, another called in, informing him that a decision had been made during a meeting held on July 25, 2012, to dismiss him as the Director of Communications from the presidency.
He asserted that he was told by the caller that the newly appointed president had stated that he could not work with him “for obvious reasons.”
“So, five minutes after the call another person called, and he was like yesterday we were in a meeting, which is the 25th July and a decision has been taken that I must leave the presidency and that the new president (John Mahama) says that he can’t work with you for obvious reasons, so get ready and pack out of the presidency.
“Go and look for three or four state institutions so that you will be considered either CEO or deputy CEO because as for the presidency you are out, so he was like by the end of the day people will call you and tell you, so, I don’t want you to be shocked that is why I am telling you in advance, I said thank you,” he added.
He added that a few days later he visited a prominent individual within the party, who bluntly suggested that he should look for another job because his appointment has been terminated by the new president.
“…a couple of days later I drove to the home of one of the big men, by 7 am I was there, so the moment I sat down, then he was like, Koku you have to go and look for another job, are you going to go back to the bank …so I replied him that the bank that I left for more than ten years now, how I’m I going back to the bank.
“So, he mentioned the name of the president, saying that he has said he cannot work with me so I have to leave and go and look for something else to do,…when I left that man’s house and I didn’t commit suicide, it means that it is not in my DNA to commit suicide, I was shocked because I thought I was so close to Prof so if anybody will deny me, not him and all this happened before the burial of prof.”
Former President John Dramani Mahama, who is also the Presidential candidate for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has assured Ghanaians that their suffering under the current NPP administration will soon come to an end.
He has urged citizens to remain calm and consider voting for the NDC in the upcoming 2024 elections as a means to alleviate their hardships.
Addressing an audience at the 44th anniversary of the June 4th uprising in Hohoe, former President Mahama empathized with Ghanaians, acknowledging their struggle under the current government.
He stated that corruption, economic hardships, and insensitivity towards the people’s plight would be a thing of the past if the NDC is elected to power.
“We are responsible for organizing and letting our message of hope reach everyone across the length and breadth of our land,” stated former President Mahama.
“The dark days will last only for a moment more, and a new dawn is lurking on the horizon.
“And when that new dawn breaks, the governmental rot, the economic hardships, the insensitivity to the plight of the people, and the offensive corruption and waste of the people’s resources will be a thing of the past,” rainbowradioonline.com quoted him as saying.
Former President Mahama urged the Ghanaian people not to be misled by “hollow sloganeering” and “shallow populism” propagated by those who had made their lives difficult for years.
He further urged citizens not to be swayed into voting for the ruling NPP in the 2024 elections but rather to choose the NDC for a brighter future.
“Do not allow them to confuse you that you must vote for them in 2024,” he warned.
John Mahama previously served as President of Ghana from 2012 to 2016 before losing to Akufo-Addo in the 2016 presidential election.
He unsuccessfully ran against Akufo-Addo again in the 2020 election.
He has been re-elected as the flagbearer of the NDC and has expressed confidence that he can win in 2024 and bring about the changes he believes the country needs.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has called on the Ministries of Chieftaincy, Interior and National Security, to intervene in the ongoing hostilities between the people of Mamprusi and Gonjaland.
The flagbearer of the opposition NDC expressed his deep regret and disappointment over conflicts emanating from the disputed border between the Soo and Wasipe traditional areas of the North East and Savanna Regions, respectively.
Mahama in a Facebook post stressed the peace and unity the feuding groups have enjoyed through intermarriage and other social relationships over the years hence, admonished them to resolve disputes peacefully instead of resorting to arms at the slightest provocation.
The former president also lamented the destruction and loss of lives that have been caused by the misunderstanding and conflicts between the Mamprusis and Gonjas.
“I have learnt with regret and great disappointment recent hostilities between sections of the Gonja and Mamprusi communities along a disputed border between the Soo and Wasipe traditional areas of the North East and Savanna Regions, respectively.
“These hostilities, emanating from disputes over traditional jurisdictional issues, have led to the destruction of property and loss of lives. This is unfortunate.
“Gonjas and Mamprusis have lived together peacefully for ages and have become family through intermarriage and other social relationships. We must endeavour to co-exist peacefully and deploy non-violent means to resolve disputes instead of resorting to arms at the slightest provocation,” the NDC flagbearer wrote.
He also called on the overlords and paramount chiefs of the Mamprugu, Gonjaland, Soo and Wasipe Traditional Areas to restore calm and deploy time-tested traditional and peaceful means to resolve the dispute.
“I call for the urgent intervention of the Overloads of Mamprugu and Gonjaland and the Paramount Chiefs of the Soo and Wasipe Traditional Areas to restore calm and deploy time-tested traditional and peaceful means to resolve the dispute.
“I also call on the Ministers for Chieftaincy, National Security, and Interior and the North East & Savanna Regional Security Councils to take urgent steps to resolve the conflict and restore calm to the area,” he added.
Tension has been escalating in the Mamprugu, Gonjaland, Soo and Wasipe Traditional Areas in recent days, stemming from a long-standing rivalry between traditional warriors from the Wasipe Traditional Area in Daboya and the Soo Traditional Area in Janga.
The clash, according to a citinewsroom.com report, erupted in the early hours of Thursday and has resulted in one death and injuries to others.
An aide to former president John Dramani Mahama, Joyce Bawah Mogtari, has criticised the Akufo-Addo administration for leveraging from the COVID-19 pandemic to exploit from Ghanaians.
She alleges that government used funds realised for the fight against the pandemic to support campaigns.
She added that the Electronic Transactions Levy (E-Levy) was another revenue stream that was misused eventually used to justify the decision to seek an International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.
Flowing from the two economic reasons she presented, Bawah Mogtari classified the government as a threat to Ghana’s democracy.
“The NPP weaponised covid-19, profiting from the pandemic; using Covid funds to support political campaigns,weaponized E-Levy and used it as a bait for going to the IMF; now they are playing God and demonising their opponents. This NPP admin. is a threat to our democracy,” her tweet of May 30, 2023 read.
Last month, the IMF approved a $3 billion economic recovery facility for Ghana, which has faced severe economic pressure since late 2019.
The government largely attributes the economic challenges to theCOVID-19pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine War, but the opposition believes the situation is due to mismanagement of the economy by the government.
An initial tranche of US$600 million has since been released by the global lender.
An aide to former president John Dramani Mahama, Stan Xoese Dogbe, has posed six questions to SK Motors, a car dealership in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The company had in a May 30 facebook post responded to some observations Stan made about a raging ‘Ghana ambulance for sale’ video that was recorded at their premises.
In their response, the company apologized for the incident stating that the recording was done on their blindside, stressing further that all processes leading to the presence of the ambulance at their premises were above board.
Stan Dogbe, who had been referenced by the company, went into the comment section to pose a new set of questions relative to the company’s contractual arrangement with government.
See his questions below:
Thank you for availing yourself here, SK Motors SK Motors FZCO.
If the ambulance was merely a demonstration model and not meant for public purchase, why did you advertise it for commercial purchase on your Facebook just as you do with all other vehicles you display and sell?
Do you agree that your decision to delete the public post advertisement many hours after fact, was an act intended to deceive the public and issues about the integrity of your business dealings?
Your ‘client’, as you suggest, the Ministry of Health, Ghana, has through the National Ambulance Service told the world that SK Motors is an Ambulance manufacturer. Is SK Motors a manufacturer of ambulances and are you the ones who manufactured the stated 26 world bank funded ambulances?
Did SK Motors bid for publicly, and won the contract to supply the said 26 ambulances under with world bank funding?
Are you aware that a Government Auditor General’s report into COVID expenditure by the Govt of Ghana reported that a number of ambulances that should have been long delivered to the Ghana MoH were not delivered and there’s been no information on why?
Why has the delivery of the ambulances delayed and is SK Motors the contracted supplier by the MoH and the National Ambulance Service?
In a video, the CEO of Engineers and Planners, Ibrahim Mahama, has been spotted regulating traffic in the dark at an unidentified site in Ghana.
The 41-second video captures the younger brother of former president John Dramani Mahama, in the middle of a road with some persons believed to be his workers directing traffic along a stretch.
In the shot are giant trucks used for mining which according to the Twitter user who shared the video were being transported up north for mining operations.
GhanaWeb checks shows that an aide to Ibrahim, Rafik was the first to circulate the video of his boss undertaking traffic duties.
“This was 2am yesterday (May 28). Mr. Ibrahim Mahama supervised the transportation of newly acquired mining equipment from Tema to the new mining site, in the Upper East Region,” Rafik stated..
Ibrahim Mahama is reputed as one of Ghana’s biggest businessmen and is known to be into the construction industry, the cement manufacturing business (via Dzata Cement) as well as intomining.
He was recently crowned Ghana’s Mining and Engineering CEO Of The Year, at the 7th Ghana CEO Summit 2023.
The goal of independence, according to former President John Dramani Mahama, has become a joke by turning to the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance.
He noted that the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda has become a slogan that has seen no actions under the Nana Akufo-Addo administration.
John Mahama was the keynote speaker at the 7th Ghana CEOs Summit.
He said: “Indeed our return to the IMF – cup in hand – has made our Ghana Beyond Aid policy the butt of jokes amongst many commentators in the world. It will take a resolute and committed political will to determine our own economic destiny.”
According to him, the agenda will “require the ability to determine our own economic policies that prioritize the well-being of our citizens, and create an environment conducive for the advancement of sustainable growth and development for job creation.”
The current flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress also took a swipe at the government over the introduction of the Income Tax Amendment Bill, Excise Duty, and Excise Tax Stamp Amendment, and Growth and the Sustainability taxes.
President Akufo-Addo has urged people in the Kumawu constituency to cast their ballots for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) parliamentary candidate in Tuesday’s by-election.
The two main political parties, NPP and National Democratic Congress (NDC) are on a drive to annex the seat.
With the highly anticipated by-election inKumawu set to take place in about 24 hours, top political party bigwigs in the NPP and NDC have intensified efforts in their bid to ensure their candidate wins the seat.
While a former President, John Dramani Mahama is making a strong case for the NDC, President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia are convincing delegates to vote for their party’s candidate.
The two independent candidates in the race have also vowed to cause an upset.
The atmosphere at Kumawu on Sunday, 21st May 2023 was a politically charged one as the NPP embarked on a massive rally.
Speaking during the NPP’s final rally in the constituency held on Sunday, May 21, the President who endorsed Ernest Yaw Anim urged the constituents to vote for him.
“The replacement for Philip Basoah is handsome, humble, and kind-hearted and is ready to serve you. He has united all members of the party in this constituency. Ernest Yaw Anim deserves to do the job. He’s number one on the ballot paper, place your thumb on where you see him, we don’t want any deceptive candidate“.
On his part, the Vice President touted the achievements of the NPP and reminded the constituents of the projects they will miss if they vote for the NDC’s candidate.
“Vote for the NPP’s candidate to go to parliament to bring development to the constituency. The NDC should know that we haven’t forgotten the dumsor era. Do you want us to experience dumsor again?” he asked.
The NPP parliamentary candidate for Kumawu, Ernest Yaw Anim also urged the constituents to avoid complacency and go out in their numbers to vote massively for him in order to ensure a resounding victory.
“Let’s all go out in our numbers to vote massively for me to win,” he urged.
The NPP’s rally was led by President Akufo-Addo, his Vice, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia and other NPP stalwarts including a former Trade Minister and a flagbearer hopeful of NPP, Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, MP for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, former Agric Minister and a flagbearer aspirant, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, NPP’s National Chairman, Stephen Ntim amongst others.
There is a heavy security presence in Kumawu as dozens of security personnel have been deployed to the area ahead of the by-election.
The four contestants include Ernest Yaw Anim of NPP, NDC’s Kwasi Amankwaa and two independent candidates.
Private legal practitioner, Kwame Adofo, has cast doubt over claims by former president and flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama, that he will be running an administration with just 60 ministers is not realistic.
His comments come on the back of claims by the flagbearer, John Mahama during his acceptance speech after a landslide win in the presidential and parliamentary primaries of the NDC.
He was speaking on Kumasi-based Hello FM.
According to Lawyer Adofo, running an administration with less than 80 ministers will be challenging for the former president. But then again, the claim didn’t come as a manifesto promise but rather an acceptance speech.
“Currently there are 86 ministers, 27 of them are cabinet ministers, 16 are regional ministers and 17 are other ministers, a sum of it all makes up to 86. So, now if you look closely at the claim by the former president, Mahama, that he was going to run an administration with just 60 ministers. Out of the 60, when you subtract 16 which is automatic, 27 cabinet ministers which also remains automatic, when you do the subtraction, you will be left with just a few ministers. It will be interesting to see what will happen because if you look at the composition, once you come under 80, you will have problems. It will be left with just 17 ministers, all other ministries have not been included yet,” he said.
The lawyer further stated that former President Mahama may come up with a more feasible figure in his manifesto after careful recalculation of the number of ministers they will need to run their administration if they should win.
“So, it is true about what he said but let’s wait on his manifesto. When we see it in the manifesto, then we can be serious about discussing it. At this stage, there is no manifesto, he only gave an acceptance speech. Maybe after their calculations, they will come up with realistic numbers because as we speak even the 60 is not realistic. So, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt that the campaign has now begun,” he added.
Background:
Mr Mahama delivering an acceptance speech following his victory in the NDC’s Primaries at the University for Development Studies (UDS), Monday, May 15, 2023, pledged his commitment to run a government with fewer officials and appointees as compared to the current Akufo-Addo-led administration.
“I am committed to operating an effective government with not more than sixty (60) ministers. These Ministers together with other appointees of the government will not be entitled to ex-gratia payments after their tenure, as they will commit to that undertaking even before the necessary constitutional amendments, including a review of the controversial Article 71,” Mr Mahama stated.
Mr. Mahama delivering an acceptance speech following his victory in the NDC’s Primaries at the University for Development Studies (UDS), Monday, 15 May 2023, pledged his commitment to run a government with fewer officials and appointees as compared to the current Akufo-Addo-led administration.
“I am committed to operating an effective government with not more than sixty (60) ministers. These Ministers together with other appointees of the government will not be entitled to ex-gratia payments after their tenure, as they will commit to that undertaking even before the necessary constitutional amendments, including a review of the controversial Article 71,” Mr Mahama stated.
Reacting to the NDC flagbearer’s speech, in a Facebook post on Tuesday, 16 May 2023, the North Tongu MP who went unopposed in the just-ended Primaries, indicated that Mr Mahama would be saving the taxpayer GH¢350 million if he fulfills his pledge.
“John Mahama’s inspiring & patriotic pledge to appoint not more than 60 Ministers & Deputies, and to prevent all his appointees from receiving ex-gratia payments, will at current conditions of service potentially save the Ghanaian taxpayer an impressive GH¢350million in four years,” Mr. Ablakwa posted on the social media platform.
The presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has called for cooperation in the NDC after the party held its much anticipated presidential and parliamentary primaries.
He stated that he has received a call from Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, congratulating on his win.
Sharing this via a tweet, the former president of Ghana said that the former Minister of Finance, together with the former Mayor of Kumasi, Kojo Bonsu, have each called him to celebrate his win with him.
Both Dr. Kwabena Duffour and Kojo Bonsu have called to congratulate me for my 98.9% victory in Saturday’s presidential primaries.
“Both Dr. Kwabena Duffour and Kojo Bonsu have called to congratulate me for my 98.9% victory in Saturday’s presidential primaries.
“The contest is over. Cooperation is what we need to build #TheGhanaWeWant,” he tweeted.
John Mahama received an overwhelming endorsement in the just-ended presidential and parliamentary primaries of the NDC, polling a total of 297,603 votes representing 98.9%.
Ahead of the Saturday, May 13, 2023, elections, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor announced a last-minute withdrawal from the race.
Former President, John Dramani Mahama has stated that former finance minister Dr Kwabena Duffuor, has congratulated him on his victory in the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) just ended presidential primaries.
He also said Mr Kojo Bonsu has also done the same thing.
Mr Mahama tweeted “Both Dr. Kwabena Duffour and Kojo Bonsu have called to congratulate me for my 98.9% victory in Saturday’s presidential primaries. The contest is over. Cooperation is what we need to build #TheGhanaWeWant.”
Both Dr. Kwabena Duffour and Kojo Bonsu have called to congratulate me for my 98.9% victory in Saturday’s presidential primaries.
Mr Mahama polled 297,603 representing 98.9% of the total valid votes emerging as the flagbearer-elect of the NDC while his contender Kojo Bonsu managed to 3,181 representing 1.1% of the total votes.
Mr Kojo Bonsu congratulated him even before the official declaration by the Electoral Commission (EC).
“I have placed a call to H.E John Dramani Mahamato congratulate him for the landslide victory. Just as I have indicated throughout my campaign, regardless of the outcome of this election, I will continue to serve the NDC party, thank you” he tweeted.
Dr Kwabena Duffuor withdrew from the race on Friday, May 12 after stating that “My concerns that the party is not ready to conduct free and fair election is evident for all to see. Taking part in such would be akin to knowingly drinking from a poisoned calabash.
“After consulting with my support base nationwide, I have been left with no choice but to withdraw from the Presidential election as I cannot contest in an election which is blatantly fraught with irregularities regardless of all my efforts to draw attention to same.”
The National Democratic Congress(NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, has indicated that if he is elected the next president of Ghana he will ensure that ministers and other appointees are exempted from ex-gratia.
The former president during his acceptance speech after his election as the flagbearer of the NDC, said he will not repeat the mistakes of the NPP government.
He said he will not bloat his government size.
Speaking at the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale, Mr. Mahama said he will appoint less than 60 ministers in his next government to protect the public purse.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, our nation is still at the crossroads with crippling debt, and an inefficient and wasteful government. We cannot continue this pathway. It is a betrayal of the people, as a leader, to keep doing things the same way when the results leave them poorer”.
“I am committed to operating an effective government with not more than sixty (60) ministers. These Ministers together with other appointees of the government will not be entitled to ex-gratia payments after their tenure, as they will commit to that undertaking even before the necessary constitutional amendments, including a review of the controversial Article 71.”
Mr. Mahama in March 2023, during his campaign launch at the Cedi auditorium at the University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) in Ho in the Volta Region first disclosed his decision to assemble not more than sixty ministers and deputies should he win the 2024 presidential elections.
A financial analyst, Joe Jackson has opined that former President,John Dramani Mahamawould face a difficult task in restoring the licenses of banks that, in his opinion, were unjustifiably collapsed during the Bank of Ghana (BoG) clean-up opeation.
Speaking to the media on Monday, May 15, he “It is going to be a tough one”.
However, he welcomed the promise by Mr Mahama to encourage more local participation in Ghana’s financial sector.
MrJacksonsaid Ghana really needs more of the indigenous people to have active participation in the sector.
“There is something else that should excite a little about what he said. Some of us have in time past worried about the concentration of foreign ownership in our financial sector.
“Unfortunately, the closure of [some of the local banks] meant that the concentration of foreign ownership became higher because our local institutions have had issues with governance.
“[John Mahama] says they will be encouraged, that is a good one and I pray it happens because we definitely do need Ghanaians in the final institutions, we definitely need financial institutions that are sympathetic to the Ghanaian course but which will hold themselves to the highest standards of behaviour especially in governance,” he said while reacting to a promise by the newly-elected flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress to restore the license of the banks that unjustifiably collapsed.
Delivering his formal acceptance speech at the University of Development Studies (UDS) on Monday, May 15 after his victory as flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Saturday, May 13 he said “we shall promote robust, local participation in our banking and financial, telecommunication, tourism, mining and agric and manufacturing sectors to grow our economy and create sustainable employment for our youths.
“We will restore indigenous Ghanaian investments in the finance and banking sector and we will create a tier banking system that will serve various segments of the market.
“We will give the opportunity to experience banking hands who were laid off needlessly to secure their careers once more and move away from the menial jobs that they were compelled to take.
“As far as practicable the banking licenses that were unjustly canceled by this government will be restored.”
Some local banks collapsed when the central bank revised the minimum paid-up capital for existing banks and new entrants from GHS120 million to GHS400 million.
According to the regulator, this was to test the viability of the banks.
The banks that were unable to meet this new requirement were either merged or collapsed.
Some nine local banks, 23 savings & loans companies, 347 microfinance institutions, 39 finance houses and 53 fund management companies closed down during the exercise.
UniBank, The Sovereign Bank, The Beige Bank, Premium Bank, The Royal Bank, Heritage Bank, Construction Bank, UT Bank, Capital Bank all collapsed. Some analysts and observers criticized the BoG and the Finance Ministry over the collapse of the banks because in their views, these banks could have been saved to continue employing Ghanaians.
Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), General Asiedu Nketia, has stated that money no longer determines who wins a seat in the party.
Speaking after the declaration of the results for the presidential primaries on Sunday dawn, Mr. Nketia expressed confidence that the party now has the men and women to ensure overwhelming victory in the 2024 general elections.
He commended the party delegates on the quality of candidates who were elected in the just-ended parliamentary primaries.
He said, “Money does not decide who gets the vote in [the] NDCanymore. We heard stories about big men, potentially rich men who could win elections; they all could not win in spite of their wealth and riches and the stories we heard about what they were intending to distribute, but we are happy that so far, the quality of candidates that have been produced in this election gives us confidence that we will go into 2024 and win presidential and win a significant majority in Parliament, and also deliver on the charge of rescuing this country.”
“We are not going to say we have the men; we want the men to prove themselves for you to say that ‘yes, NDC, you have the men’…” he added.
On Saturday, May 13, 2023, the NDC elected parliamentary candidates to represent the party in the 2024 election.
The party also elected former President John Dramani Mahama as its flagbearer for the 2024 elections.
Former President,John Dramani Mahama has made his first public statement after emerging flagbearer at the just ended National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) presidential and parliamentary elections.
In a landslide victory, the former president polled 297,603 (98.9%) against his contender Kojo Bonsu who polled 3,181 (1.1%) in the election held on Saturday, May 13, 2023.
The Electoral Commission’s returning officer made the declaration in the wee hours of May 14, 2023.
In his speech, he said he was humbled by the vote of confidence and described the outcome as a victory for the NDC as a whole.
He thanked God for a campaign that was largely incident free as he crisscrossed the country to canvass for votes.
He reserved thanks for constituency executives for their support during his trips across the country.
He also thanked the three contenders in the race, Dr. Kwabena Dufuor, who withdrew at the last minute and Kojo Bonsu who was his only challenger.
Mahama reminded the party that their eyes must be on the ultimate prize which is to win political power come 2024.
John Dramani Mahama became president of Ghana ahead of the 2012 general election after succeeding his boss, John Evans Atta Mills following his demise.
The NDC later put John Mahama up as its presidential candidate in the 2012 presidential election where he clinched victory from his closest contender, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party.
John Mahama in 2016 lost power to Nana Akufo-Addo and subsequently failed to recapture power in 2020 when he was elected flagbearer of the NDC.
Ahead of the 2023 presidential primaries, John Mahama enjoyed wide endorsement within the NDC and was presumed the party’s flagbearer in waiting.
Ahead of the election, Dr Duffuor who is a former finance minister under the erstwhile NDC administration led by John Evans Atta Mills, had sought an interlocutory injunction against the party from going ahead with the election.
At the hearing of his application inAccra High Court barely 24 hours before the election, Dr Duffuor’s lawyers informed the court that they had been instructed by their client to withdraw the application.
Later at a press conference on Friday, Dr Duffuor announced his resignation from the flagbearership contest.
The National Democratic Congress(NDC) will today, Saturday, May 13 choose a flagbearer and parliamentary candidates for the 2024 general election.
This follows the withdrawal of the injunction case filed by one of the three flag bearer aspirants, Dr Kwabena Duffuor.
However, Dr Duffuor did not only withdraw the case, but also pulled out of the presidential primary, leaving the contest now in a two-man race between former President John Dramani Mahama and former Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly Chief Executive, Kojo Bonsu.
In withdrawing from the elections, the former Minister of Finance yesterday evening in a press conference explained that his decision was based on his grievances with the processes leading to the party’s upcoming primaries; especially the voters register.
He said the exercise had been marred by a lot of irregularities; which had not been resolved by the leadership of the party.
He, therefore, announced that he would no longer vie for the flagbearership of the NDC. However, he would still keep in touch with the grass roots.
“As at this time, the party has begun distributing the ballot papers to the various regions and constituencies without our involvement. I wish to reiterate my commitment to the party and grass roots however, my concern that the party is not ready to conduct free and fair elections is evident for all of us to see.
“Taking part in such an event will be akin to knowing drinking from a poisoned calabash. After consulting with my support base nationwide, I have been left with no choice but to withdraw as I cannot contest in an election blatantly flawed with irregularities regardless of all my effort to draw attention to the same,” Dr Duffour said.
Court action
This came hours after Dr Duffour withdrew the suit he had filed against the NDC following what he said were some discrepancies his team had identified in the party’s voters register to be used for the exercise.
Last Monday, he dragged the party to court, praying that the election should not be held until a complete register was delivered to his camp and the two other presidential aspirants at least five weeks ahead of the election.
The writ said a sizeable number of the eligible voters had no photographs exhibited on the voters register, making it impossible to conduct any meaningful verification exercise on those affected.
He also alleged that the number of constituencies on the hard drive given to his representatives was 220 as against 228 constituencies.
The litany of allegations also included the fact that there were inaccuracies that rendered the photo album unviable for a free, fair and credible election, and that an exceptional list of 74,799 people had been created to take part in the election, while 3,910 eligible voters in the 220 constituencies had been disenfranchised.
However, when the court sat yesterday, his counsel, Opoku Amponsah, said he had instructions from his client to discontinue the case.
“The discussions came up this morning for which reason I could file the necessary processes,” he told the court.
The judge, Mariam Afful, subsequently struck out the application as withdrawn.
Election
Consequently, the elections are expected to go ahead this morning across the country.
The Electoral Commission (EC), which initially declined to supervise the polls due to the injunction process served on the body, has agreed to conduct the polls.
The Chairperson of the EC, Jean Mensa, who made this known to the Daily Graphic, said the commission would go ahead to supervise and conduct the election.
Otherwise, the NDC stated at a news conference yesterday that it would resort to an internal mechanism to conduct today’s election, if the EC declined to supervise it.
The presidential primary will take place in 275 out of the 276 constituencies initially earmarked for the polls except in the Manhyia South Constituency, which will not vote in the parliamentary primaries too.
The parliamentary primaries will, however, be held in 212 constituencies, with 16 put on hold, and 47 going unopposed.
The head of the Elections Committee of NDC, Kakra Essamuah, told the Daily Graphic that a total of 356,624 delegates of the party were expected to vote in the election.
Delegates
They comprise branch, constituency, regional and national executive, former national executive, sitting Members of Parliament (MPs), former MPs and government appointees, NDC-appointed Article 71 Office Holders, and metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives that served under the party’s government.
The rest are NDC-appointed former deputy and ministers of state, former Ambassadors and High Commissioners, former Members of the Council of State, presidential staffers who fall under Article 71 of the Constitution, foreign chapters and members of the NDC Professional Forum.
Some 692 aspirants are contesting the parliamentary primaries, and three in the presidential primary.
With Dr Duffuor’s withdrawal, the two remaining flag bearer aspirants are a former Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Kojo Bonsu, and former President John Dramani Mahama.
According to the breakdown, 259 constituencies will fully participate in both the presidential and parliamentary primaries.
Sixteen constituencies will participate in only the presidential and not the parliamentary, while Manhyia South would not take part in the election at all due to some internal dispute.
Three persons traveling with former President John Dramani Mahama on his campaign tour of the Savannah Region have been injured in an accident.
The victims include a TV3 Journalist, Christopher Amoako. For now, it is unclear yet how the accident occurred.
The three sustained varied injuries following the accident which happened at Dartotili, a suburb of Tamale in the Northern Region on Thursday.
The two other victims are the Savannah Regional Communications officer of the National Democratic Congress, R.A. Jelil, and one other person only identified as Samed.
The team was returning from East and North-East Gonja Districts and heading towards Yapei and Daoboya in the Central and North Gonja Districts, but could not reach their destination.
The injured have since been conveyed to the Tamale Teaching Hospital For medical attention.
The former President was pictured attending to one of the victims, Christopher Amoako of TV3, who was lying on the floor.
Former President, John Dramani Mahama has advised Ghanaians to refrain from placing their hopes in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for a better economy.
Speaking to National Democratic Congress delegates in the Wa East constituency in the Upper West Region, Mahama claimed that the NPP is not capable of changing Ghana’s fortunes within the remaining one and a half years left for it to leave power.
Mahama opined that the NPP has been in power for almost seven years hence has nothing new to offer.
He thus advised Ghanaians not to expect any miracles from the NPP.
“We have experienced NDC’s administration- after Professor Evans Atta-Mills, I took over from him making it 8 years. And we have experienced NPP for almost 7 years. They are left with one and a half years more, no miracle is going to happen. What they have done is all that they can do, they are not going to add anything to it. So anybody thinking that there will be a miracle is just tickling himself and dreaming. What you have is all there is, there’s going to be nothing more,” Mr. Mahama said.
Mahama’s comments come at a time when the government is engaging the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $3 billion bailout to help restore the ailing economy.
The government has also rolled out policies and programs aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.
The government has expressed hope of securing the Paris Club financing assurances within the shortest possible time to enable the $3 billion support from the IMF. The Deputy Finance Minister, John Kumah, assured that discussions towards securing the bailout support from the IMF have been fruitful.
Mahama’s criticisms of the NPP’s ability to revive Ghana’s economy come amidst the ongoing debate about the country’s economic future.
John Dramani Mahama, the former President of Ghana, has pledged to create a favourable environment for anti-corruption institutions to clamp down on corrupt officials if he wins the upcoming presidential election.
Mr. Mahama has stated that corrupt government officials will be discouraged from engaging in corrupt practices during his tenure.
Speaking to delegates in Lambussie in the Upper West Region, he reiterated that corrupt individuals will be punished regardless of their political affiliation under the next National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
Mr. Mahama emphasized that he would allow anti-corruption institutions to function independently and that he would not interfere or shield anyone who engages in corrupt activities.
He stated that anyone who is caught stealing public funds will face the full force of the law, whether they are in his government, past governments, or the previous government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
“It doesn’t matter whether you belong to our government or past governments, if you steal the people’s money we will deal with you. If elected as President, I will allow anti-corruption institutions to work. Nobody should come and call me to save them when they catch you. Any person whether in my government or outside my government or in the previous NPP government, if the anti-corruption institutions are dealing with you that is your business because we must save this country,” Mr. Mahama said.
Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Liberal Party Ghana, Kwaku Marfo has stated that his party will likely win the 2024 presidential election if the National Democratic Congress presents former President John Dramani Mahama as its candidate.
His view is contrary to the recent report by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) which has predicted a win for Mr Mahama in a recent report.
“With how we are resolved to win the 2024 elections, if the NDC presents former President Mahama as their candidate the election will be a cool chop for the Liberal Party. So I don’t believe in the survey. Because, now Ghanaians have been enlightened about the fact that both NPP and NDC have turned Ghana into a business avenue.”
The United Kingdom-based organisation has projected a win for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) after the 2024 General Election.
The projection was contained in their April 2023 Country Report on Ghana which was published on Friday, April 28, 2023.
It explained that the loss of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) will be underlined by anti-incumbency sentiment and economic issues allied with cost of living.
But according to Kwaku Marfo, the LPG led by Percival Kofi Akpaloo rather stands a better chance of winning the election if former President Mahama contests on the NDC’s ticket.
The aspiring flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, John Dramani Mahama, has dismissed claims he is not on good terms with members of the party in the Northern Region.
According to him, all the parliamentary members of parliament are his brothers, and he believes Haruna Iddrisu and his colleagues will be the next generation to lead the party.
Speaking in the Northern region as part of his campaign tour ahead of the May 13 elections, he cautioned party members against making conspicuous voice recordings within party meetings and leaking, as it brings division in the party.
“…I know some people like conspiracy theories. This one doesn’t like this one; this and this one are quarrelling; count me out. I have no enemies in the Northern region; all of them are my younger brothers. Hudu Yahaya and Co. started it, and then we are the next generation after Hudu and Co., and I know that Haruna and all of them are the next generation after us. We will finish and hand over power to them, and they will lead us.
“…So let us be together. Those who have been putting us in conspiracy theories, hiding and recording tapes, and insulting everybody—if you are a true NDC member, what you are doing is rather dividing the party, not uniting it.
“And so we are united, and there is no problem between us, and we are going to work together, win the election 2024, and we are going to put Ghana back on its feet,” he said during his tour.
Former President John Dramani Mahama is on a national campaign tour to seek votes to lead the NDC into the 2024 general elections.
The former President, who has gone through vetting and the balloting process of the NDC, is number one on the ballot paper for the party’s presidential primary slated for May 13.
John Mahama would be contesting the party’s flagbearership with a former Chief Executive Officer of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Kojo Bonsu, and a former Minister of Finance and Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, who occupy the second and third positions, respectively, on the ballot paper.
Former President, John Dramani Mahama has slammed the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government for borrowing excessively.
Mr Mahama said when he was leaving office in 2016, the debt of Ghana was GHS120 billion with projects to show for it.
However, he said, at the moment, the debt is almost GHS600 billion with no projects to show.
Interacting with delegates of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Sissala West as part of his campaign to be elected flagbearer of the party, on Tuesday, May 9, Mr Mahama said ” When we were leaving office the debt was GHS120billion. Today, it is almost GHS 600 billion but with no infrastructure projects to show for.
“At least we should have clean drinking water, a hospital built, and infrastructure but unfortunately, that is not the case.”
He further said Ghanaians are calling for the NDC to return to office.
“Ghanaians are asking the NDC to come back because they have realized that what they were told about the NDC, they were all lies,” Mr Mahama said.
Leading NDC official Ekwow Spio-Garbrah has urged delegates to cast large numbers of ballots for former leader John Dramani Mahama in order to increase the party’s prospects of regaining power.
Speaking to a news conference in Accra on Monday, Mr. Spio-Garbrah stated that among the three candidates, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor and Kojo Bonsu, Mr. Mahama remained the only one who had been tried and tested.
His justification is that Mr. Mahama is the only one who can “rescue” Ghana from its current economic problems and reposition Ghana to become once again appealing.
Spio-Garbrah, himself a former flagbearer aspirant ahead of the 2020 elections who was defeated by Mr Mahama said his endorsement is hinging on a research conducted by his team which predicts Mahama to win by 80 per cent.
While rooting for Mahama, Mr Spio-Gabrah commended his two contenders, Dr Duffuor and Mr Bonsu for the bold attempt to contest the former president, expressing the hope that they will avail themselves to work with Mr Mahama after Saturday’s internal elections.
He also appealed to delegates to vote for his son, Dr Kobina Sebastian Ekwow Spio-Garbrah who is standing as a parliamentary candidate for the Essikado-Ketan Constituency in the Western Region.
Prior to the presidential and parliamentary primaries set on May 13, 2023, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, a flagbearer candidate for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has voiced concerns about irregularities in the party’s voter register.
To ensure a fair and accurate process, Dr. Duffuor has urged the NDC National Executive to postpone the polls. Kojo Bonsu, a former chief executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, and John Dramani Mahama, a former president, are Dr. Duffuor’s opponents in the primary.
In a letter to the General Secretary of the NDC, Duffuor’s campaign team highlighted the incomplete and inaccurate delegates register and urged for sufficient time to clean the register to ensure a transparent election.
“The incomplete and inaccurate Voters register has a high potential of deliberately causing an irreparable damage to the bright chances of Candidate Dr. Kwabena Duffuor – which we are unable to countenance,” the letter reads.
Considering the findings, Team Duffuor is demanding the following;
1. Postponement of the May 13th Presidential primaries.
2. Stakeholders meeting to establish an agreeable roadmap that will guarantee the integrity of the Voters Register.
3. Clean the Voters Register within an agreeable timeframe to ensure free and fair elections.
4. To save the image of the NDC so that the party can have the credible voice to speak on national elections matters when the need arises.
Ahead of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), former President John Dramani Mahama is calling for unity of its members, especially presidential and parliamentary aspirant.
The vote is slated for May 13, 2023 with the presidential primary being the main focus for most analysts.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has reiterated calls for unity among the rank and file ahead of the process.
“Everyone has his supporters, there’s no point saying this person supported the winning team, so we will stay aside. All of us are NDC, let’s support each other after the primaries,” Mr. Mahama advised in his continued engagement with supporters at Bimbilla in the Northern Region.
Mahama is seeking to be re-elected to lead the NDC into the fourth straight election after winning in 2012 and losing in 2016 and 2020.
John Mahama will face competition in the primary from former finance minister Kwabena Duffuor and former Kumasi mayor Kojo Bonsu.
Former President,John Dramani Mahamahas pledged to wage a vigorous anti-corruption campaign when voted into power.
Mr Mahama contends corruption is one of the channels through which state resources are wasted.
Addressing NDC delegates at Garu in theUpper East Region, the NDC flagbearer hopeful stressed that any individual found engaging in corrupt practices under his administration will be dealt with regardless of his or her party affiliation.
“NDC is going to come into office, and we are going to launch a strong fight against corruption because we all know that corruption is one of the waste pipes in this country. People who appropriate the money of the state must be brought to book and sanctioned and NDC is going to do that”.
“It doesn’t matter whether the people are our own or from some other party, we will make sure that the sword is slammed equally and anyone who takes the people’s money must suffer for it.”
Mr Mahama also promised to repair Akufo-Addo’s problematic Free SHS policy and the National Health Insurance Scheme if he is re-elected President in the 2024 elections.
He said reviewing the two policies will ameliorate the plight of Ghanaians and enhance the policies.
“Free SHS is not working properly, the benefit it is supposed to give the parents, they are not getting. I can tell you today that the money we are spending on our children to go to school is far more than when we used to pay school fees”.
“We are going to repair the free SHS and make it better and create the situation when where school reopens, all the children will go together and when they vacate they all come home together.”
Gospel singer, Nacee has stated that former president, John Dramani Mahama is a huge fan of his work and also values his creativity.
Nacee has composed over three popular campaign songs for the former president.
Despite the controversies surrounding Nacee’s campaign songs which many have termed as an endorsement, he details how it all began with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) under President John Agyekum Kufuor.
“I started with campaign songs way back in 2000, President Kufuor’s time and I don’t even recall the song…in 2008. I toured Ghana with Nana Addo. We were running under the slogan ‘Believe In Ghana’ with a host of musicians. It was Nana Addo who took me to Tamale for the first time,” the singer disclosed in an interview with Kofi TV in April 2023.
His friendship with Mr. Mahama has birthed some of the most popular elections songs that have stuck on the minds of citizens.
“It was in 2012 when I became friends withPresident Mahama and it seems I was with both parties (NPP and NDC). In 2012, it was ‘John Mahama Dey Be’ and in 2016, we made ‘Onaapo’. In 2020 we did ‘Mahama Okada’, I love cartoons and that inspired the song.
It was a song I wanted kids to equally love…the words I said, in the beginning, don’t have any meaning…one thing about Mahama is that he loves my creativity level. Mahama is a nice person who makes things flow.
I will be so stupid to trade my friendship with Mahama for money or cars. They teach you how to fish,” the versatile musician shared.
Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has refuted claims by former President John Dramani Mahama that the cocoa sector in Ghana has collapsed.
The former President had reportedly claimed that the producer price and mismanagement had led to the collapse of the cocoa sector, thereby justifying farmers giving up their cocoa farms to illegal mining due to low remuneration.
However, COCOBOD has described such statements as misleading and detrimental to the cocoa sector, which forms the foundation of Ghana’s economy.
The management of COCOBOD in a statement reacting to the former President’s claim acknowledged that galamsey operations posed a significant danger to Ghana and argued that any attempts to justify or rationalize the conversion of a cocoa farm into a Galamsey site must be met with contempt.
The management of COCOBOD also stated that the Former President’s statement regarding the increase in cocoa producer prices every year during his administration is inaccurate since records available point to the opposite.
COCOBOD went on to state that the cocoa industry is not collapsing as portrayed by the former President. Ghana recorded its highest-ever cocoa production volume of 1,045,500 metric tonnes in the 2020/21 Crop Season. COCOBOD continues to invest in interventions that will ensure not just the sustenance but the growth of the industry, including the Hand Pollination Programme, the Mass Pruning Programme, and the Cocoa Rehabilitation Programme.
Furthermore, COCOBOD said it was enrolling cocoa farmers across the country on the Cocoa Farmers Pension Scheme (CFPS) for the first time in the history of the industry to ensure a decent retirement.
COCOBOD said it remained committed to supporting farmers and ensuring the sustainability of the cocoa industry and called on the general public to support its efforts.
Read the entire statement below;
RE-AKUFO-ADDO COLLAPSED COCOA SECTOR
The attention of the Management of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has been drawn to publications on certain media platforms citing statements made by former President John Dramani Mahama, alluding to a collapse of Ghana’s cocoa sector.
The Former President made these statements while touring the Western North Region, claiming the producer price and mismanagement have collapsed the cocoa sector. Mr Mahama justified farmers giving their cocoa farms to illegal mining due to low remuneration.
Management of COCOBOD refutes the notion of a collapsing cocoa industry. Such statements are misleading and detrimental to a vital sector like cocoa, which forms the foundation of Ghana’s economy. We, therefore, wish to use the opportunity to make some clarifications and also set the records straight.
It is widely acknowledged that Galamsey operations pose a significant danger to our nation, and any attempts to justify or rationalise the conversion of a piece of land, especially a cocoa farm, into a Galamsey site, like the Former President sought to do, must be met with contempt.
This menace has the potential to negate all the investments made by the government to modernise cocoa farming and improve productivity. It is, therefore, crucial that prominent figures in our society exercise caution when making public statements that rationalize cocoa farmers trading their farms for temporary monetary benefit through illegal mining.
Management also wishes to place on record, that the Former President’s statement regarding the increase in cocoa producer prices every year during his administration is inaccurate, since the records available point to the opposite. Specifically, there was no upward adjustment of the producer price of cocoa in the 2012/2013 Crop Season. Similarly, the producer price of the preceding season was maintained for the 2015/2016 Crop Season, with no upward adjustment.
Indeed, within a three-year period of the Former President’s administration, i.e. the 2010/2011 to 2012/2013 crop season, there was a total of six (6) percent increase in the producer price. In contrast, within the last three years, there has been a 23 percent, 0 percent and a 21 percent increase in the producer price of cocoa.
It is important to note that the producer price is largely determined by international market prices as well as other industry costs, and every effort is made to arrive at a producer price that is fair to farmers even when international market conditions are unfavourable.
We further wish to put on record and also assure the general public that the cocoa industry is not collapsing as being portrayed by the Former President. Ghana recorded its highest-ever cocoa production volume of one million and forty-five thousand five hundred metric tonnes (1,045,500) in the 2020/21 Crop Season. A cocoa industry which holds the position as the second highest producer in the world cannot also be said to have collapsed.
COCOBOD continues to invest in interventions which will ensure not just the sustenance but the growth of the industry. Notably, the Hand Pollination Programme that increases pod count; the Mass Pruning Programme to enhance pests and disease control and induce flowering as well as the Cocoa Rehabilitation Programme which seeks to deal with the Cocoa Swollen Shoot virus disease that has ravaged about 45% of our cocoa tree stock. This is the biggest intervention that has ever been made to reverse the major threats that face the industry.
Currently, through a facility from the African Development Bank (AfDB), a total of 38515.54 hectares of otherwise diseased and unproductive cocoa farms have been fully rehabilitated so far, and some 59151.44 hectares have also been treated. The process of restoring other diseased farms is ongoing across the country.
For the first time in the history of the industry, COCOBOD is enrolling cocoa farmers across the country onto the Cocoa Farmers Pension Scheme (CFPS) to ensure a decent retirement.
COCOBOD remains committed to supporting farmers and ensuring the sustainability of the cocoa industry, and we will continue to work closely with our stakeholders to achieve our goals.
We call on the general public to support our efforts.
The host of Good Evening Ghana on Metro TV, Paul Adom-Otchere has said that President Akufo-Addo is the first to eschew from the purportedly predetermined spiritual route put forth by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the country’s first leader.
Speaking on the Tuesday, April 25, 2023, edition of his program, the journalist explained that during the era of Kwame Nkrumah, he laid down some spiritual processes that all presidents after him were supposed to follow, and the failure to do so meant that they would never get to the end of their tenures.
He explained that it is this path that the likes of Edward Akufo-Addo, Dr. Kofi Abrefa Busia, and Dr. Hilla Limann did not follow in, that led to their overthrow as political leaders of Ghana.
“You may not believe it, but it is true. This is Osagyefo the president. Now, since Osagyefo the president left, and when he died, it is believed that he determined how every other person should become president of Ghana. It’s a spiritual matter so you’d have to believe it or not; it’s not verifiable.
“Osagyefo had determined that for you to become president of Ghana, he had determined a certain spiritual path. This story I am telling you has quite a bit to do with our good friend who died, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey… for the presidents that came after him… Edward Akufo-Addo and Prime Minister Busia, together they formed the executive of the second republic, both of them determined that they would not follow the path, or they probably didn’t even know that Nkrumah had determined some path.
“For those who didn’t know that Nkrumah had determined a path for you to become a president of Ghana, they were overthrown. Edward Akufo-Addo and Prime Minister Busia were overthrown because they didn’t know, or didn’t use the path that Nkrumah had determined…
“Then comes Dr. Limann who either did not know or didn’t go along the path to be president of Ghana, so he was overthrown. Then comes the famous JJ. JJ started by a coup d’état and later transferred to a constitutional rule. When he was about to transfer to constitutional rule, he was told that, ‘chief, for you to be president of Ghana, like Nkrumah was elected, you have to go through a certain spiritual path, and also do certain things,’” he explained.
Paul Adom-Otchere continued his narration by saying that while Jerry John Rawlings started as a military ruler, he also agreed to follow in this strange, mysterious route before he was able to fully complete his democratic two-term political tenure.
He stated some of the things that, for instance, JJ Rawlings had to do that are evidences of this mystery.
He added that the coming of John Agyekum Kufuor as president was also through the same path.
“Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings agreed. That is the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum at the old Polo Grounds; that was his creation. It’s related to this story I’m telling you… JJ putting up the Nkrumah Mausoleum to honour Dr. Kwame Nkrumah at the old Polo Grounds, bringing his body from Nkroful to Accra, is related to this story. So, JJ did that for two terms. Then comes John Agyekum Kufuor; he was told that if he did not go through this path to be president of Ghana, ‘you will never be president of Ghana.’ Well, he obeyed.
“So, during Ghana at 50, billboards were put up of Nkrumah and Kufuor sitting in a chair… laughing… and then the renaming of the Kwame Nkrumah University… President Kufuor restored the Nkrumah name into that university… because if you don’t do something to enhance the Nkrumah name, forget it, if you win the election, they will overthrow you,” he added.
According to Paul, when President John Evans Atta-Mills also came into office, he did the same things, just as John Dramani Mahama.
He explained, for instance, that John Mahama restored the Kwame Nkrumah Circle with the statue of Nkrumah, as a way of enhancing the name of the country’s first president, as proof of this spiritual mystery.
However, the veteran journalist stated that during Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s time, for the first two times he tried to become president (in 2008, 2012), he vehemently fought this spiritual path and paid the price for it.
“Fast-forward, Nana Addo, as he was then called, was told that to become president of Ghana, you have to pass here, and you have to do something, and he said no. he said he would never do it, and it’s not because ‘I am a Christian or religious; I won’t do it.’ And that’s why I said Obetsebi-Lamptey is in the mix.
“So, in 2008, when he lost the election, he was told that, ‘Chief, you see why you lost the election? You lost this election because you didn’t do the thing.’ He must have given it a thought, I think. Then comes 2012 and he said he won’t do it, but they said if you don’t do it, you can’t become president of Ghana, but he still insisted. 2012 came and he lost.
“So, after the election, they went back to him… so, he gave it a thought and so he called some spiritual people. And this story I’m telling you, Ken Ofori-Atta is very involved in this story, because he went to South Africa, met some guy who was talking to him about why it is difficult for his cousin to be president, and this South African person said there is something you people need to do. And Ken said I know; we’ve been told, but it’s difficult for us – that’s not our faith; that’s not our worship, we can’t.,” he explained.
Paul Adom-Otchere further stated that eventually, it had to take the intervention of some religious leaders in Ghana to break this spiritual aura around the country before Akufo-Addo could rule without any challenges.
He also claimed that the confusion around the change of date for the national elections from December 7 to November 7 in 2016 forms part of this.
He added that until that spiritual bondage was broken, Akufo-Addo would not have been able to successfully run a two-term presidency in Ghana.
The journalist added that it is for this reason that he supports the government of Nana Akufo-Addo.
“So, Ken came back and organised spiritual people… and said can we go and overturn this thing? Well, about 12 or 16 of them listened and said ok, Mr President, where is the thing? Eh said the thing here; I’ve been there before… they organised cars and went to look at it… They said what we need to do is a prayer chain – a very serious prayer chain… and we have to start now. They start and discover a lot more in the narrative, so they need to move from that spot to other parts of the country.
“They came and told the president that they were on it and that they could release Ghana from these shackles, however, we need more time. However, we have been told that you and your party want the election on November 7 – this 2016…
“So, Akufo-Addo is the only president who has ascended the throne not going through that and that is why I stand with him. He’s the only one president who is going to do a two-term, who has not gone through the path, that is why you see the things that are happening happening.
“The furore against his candidature at the beginning, it came out of the noise of evil; it’s out of the noise of evil… because the spirits knew that he would not obey that path,” he said.
John Dramani Mahama’s assertion that Ghana’s cocoa industry has collapsed has been refuted by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
The former president had claimed that it now takes three months for farmer to receive their cash for cocoa beans.
Mahama also added that the cocoa farmers no longer enjoy free fertiliser as they used to during the period of the NDC.
But in a statement, COCOBOD said, “The notion of a collapsing cocoa industry. Such statements are misleading and detrimental to a vital sector like cocoa, which forms the foundation of Ghana’s economy. We, therefore, wish to use the opportunity to make some clarifications and also set the records straight.
“It is widely acknowledged that galamsey operations pose a significant danger to our nation, and any attempts to justify or rationalise the conversion of a piece of land, especially a cocoa farm, into a Galamsey site, like the former president sought to do, must be met with contempt.”
The statement added “this menace has the potential to negate all the investments made by the government to modernise cocoa farming and improve productivity. It is, therefore, crucial that prominent figures in our society exercise caution when making public statements that rationalize cocoa farmers trading their farms for temporary monetary benefit through illegal mining.
“Management also wishes to place on record, that the Former President’s statement regarding the increase in cocoa producer prices every year during his administration is inaccurate, since the records available point to the opposite. Specifically, there was no upward adjustment of the producer price of cocoa in the 2012/2013 Crop Season. Similarly, the producer price of the preceding season was maintained for the 2015/2016 Crop Season, with no upward adjustment.”
Special aide to former President John Dramani Mahama,Stan Xoese Dogbe has sent s strong caution to the two opponents of his boss ahead of the May 13 presidential primaries of the opposition National Democratic Congress.
According to him, the two, former Minister for Finance Dr Kwabena Duffour and former Mayor of Kumasi Kojo Bonsu have resorted to a campaign of insults and attacks on Mr Mahama whiles the former president does the contrary.
“In keeping with his exemplary characteristics, and in furtherance to the objectives of his Campaign Coordinating Team, John Mahama’s followers, an overwhelming number of us, cutting across the branches, wards, constituencies, regions and nationally, have kept our campaigns in same exemplary manner, speaking to his plans for the NDC, between now and during the campaign for 2024, and his national vision of ‘Building the Ghana that we want Together’.
“Unfortunately, and increasingly, the two others in the race with Mr. Mahama have continued to engage in a campaign of negativity against his person and his record. They continue to spread lies about him, attacking him and insulting his person,” he stated in a Facebook post.
Suggesting that the Mahama support base can respond to the attacks with what he described as shocking issues against the two, Stan Dogbe dared Dr Duffour and Kojo Bonsu to continue with such attacks.
“It is not that the large mass of the NDC base cannot respond to these attacks on their candidate with issues and facts that will shock this country, but we all believe in our leader and his style of doing things, and also in party unity.
“But! and a big But!!
“Since it is clear that the insults and attacks are planned to increase in the 2 weeks to go, mine is to say this morning, simply, that let us all see how it will go.
“You want to spread lies about someone? Try it in the next few days and let us see where it ends all of us,” he said.
Dogbe asked persons who can call the two presidential hopefuls to order but have kept quiet not to be hypocritical when Mr Mahama’s supporters respond to their attacks.
“Those who have been hearing, listening and reading their lies about John Mahama and yet remained quiet, please remain quiet when the overwhelming majority of NDC supporters and Ghanaians respond in equal measure, but with verifiable facts about the actions and records of these persons.
“Don’t come preaching we are one party,” he said.
The NDC will elect a flagbearer and parliamentary candidates for the 2024 general elections on May 13.
Ahead of the contest former President Mahama has received wide endorsement within the NDC but his opponents remain adamant and have promised a stiff contest.
A former president of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, has blamed the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for destroying farmlands in mining zones through illicit mining (galamsey).
The galamsey report by Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, according to Mr. Mahama, is clear evidence of this assertion.
Speaking to delegates in Sefwi Wiawso as part of his tour of the Western North area, John Mahama stated that the NPP government’s galamsey activities have destroyed important agriculture fields.
“The former Minister and Chair of the Committee leading the fight against galamsey has in the report revealed that the galamsey activities are done by NPP bigwigs. Since the NPP assumed office, most of the country’s farms have been destroyed because of illegal mining.”
The aspiringNational Democratic Congress (NDC) Presidential Candidate, also said the country’s cocoa sector is on the verge of collapse because of the mismanagement of the sector by the Akufo-Addo government.
Mr. Mahama maintained that the government’s failure to adjust the producer price of cocoa annually and the delayed payment of farmers for cocoa beans are part of the factors destroying the sector.
“Under the previous NDC administration, we ensured that there was an upward adjustment in the producer price [of cocoa] every year. But that is not the case with this government. Price adjustments are taking place after four years. This is what is collapsing the sector”, he stated.
Mr. Mahama added that the sector must be supported, noting that some farmers no longer find farming cocoa lucrative.
He referred to a farmer who said he will give out his land for galamsey because the returns are far better than farming.
“He doesn’t mind selling his farm for galamsey because there’s no profit from the cocoa business today. Payment of farmers for their cocoa purchases is no longer instant, and they do not get any bonus. Farmers must now wait for three to four months to receive payment”, he added.
The former president is visiting all nine constituencies in the region and is expected to continue to the Ashanti Region.
Former president, John Dramani Mahama has advised the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu to resign after he publicly acknowledged that the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) does not function anymore.
According to the health minister, he no longer uses the service and prefers to pay for his medical treatment.
According to him, treatment given to NHIS card holders at the various facilities is below par, complaining bitterly that patients who are unable to pay are being denied access to medical services.
Responding to the Minister’s admission of failure, the former president said Mr Agyemang Manu must resign.
“He himself has admitted that he has failed. He has not been able to grow the NHIS and he says it has failed… he has no business being the minister for health. He should resign”,
Mr Mahama said to wild applause at a meeting with branch and constituency executives of his party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Sefwi Adobokrom, in the Bia East Constituency.
Providing some more detail, Mr Mahama said NHIS cards are being turned away from most health facilities because government is not paying their claims.
“Health facilities have not been paid since last year for services provided to cardholders. How do you expect them to continue treating them?” he quizzed.
Many have questioned the Minister’s public complaints instead of taking responsibility to make the Scheme functional.
A social media commentator, sharing her thoughts on the minister’s statement said, “he appears to be talking like an outsider who is merely observing the situation without any ability to effect change within the system”.
If the NHIS is not functioning as it was before, who should take responsibility, Mr Mahama continued, restating his position that Mr Kwaku Agyeman Manu must resign.
“It is unacceptable for a Minister to act as a passive observer on the sideline. The collapse of the Scheme occurred during his tenure and under his leadership. Accepting that the system is not working should be accompanied by a resignation.”
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) Dr Mustapha Hamid has argued that it will be very easy for Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to beat John Mahama in the 2024 Presidential Election given their credentials and the policy positions they have both espoused so far.
Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Evening Ghana show last Thursday, Dr Hamid while declaring his support for Dr Bawumia’s bid to lead the New Patriotic Party (NPP) argued Dr Bawumia is in pole position to beat John Mahama, the presumptive flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
“Well, I back Dr Bawumia. He’s going to win the NPP primaries. There is absolutely no doubt about it. Oh yeah! It’s done. I am sure the others [ aspirants to the flagbearer position] know. But it’s a competition so it’s okay for them to show up…So inside the NPP, he is going to win. Then when it comes to the national [ level], that is an even easier job. Have you heard John Mahama articulate any serious policy position? I don’t know; I haven’t heard. He has absolutely nothing to his name.
I want to sound very respectful. But with the greatest of respects, John Mahama is quite empty. And where we are as a country, we don’t need that hollowness, that shallowness. We need depth. We need deep thinking. We need someone who knows the craft of Government to be able to fashion out the kinds of programmes that will transform this country. And those are the programmes that under the leadership of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and with the support of Dr. Bawumia, the NPP has put all the way for the transformation of this country…We are going to make sure that by the time we go into the elections in 2024, Ghanaians have absolutely no doubt in their minds that Bawumia is the choice,” he expatiated.
Campaigns for the 2024 Presidential Election have started in earnest even though Ghana’s dominant parties – the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) are yet to select their flagbearers. John Mahama is predictably the NDC’s candidate for the election while it is still anybody’s game for the NPP even though Dr Bawumia is amassing massive support from party grassroots and high-ranking officers.
Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia has taken a taken a swipe at former president John Dramani Mahama, branding him as a policy-less politician with his over three decades of serving in public office.
Bawumia said at a public function in the Ayawaso Central Constituency that he will continue to ask one question of John Mahama going into the future, a question he believes the former president will never have an answer to.
“I asked John Mahama one question, he has not yet answered it. So far, I asked him just one question.
“I say, John Mahama, you have been Assemblyman, you have been deputy minister, you have been minister, you have been vice president, you have been president; over the last 30 years, so tell us one policy we can associate with you over 30 years of political life,” he stressed.
The first time Bawumia launched the ‘attack’ on Mahama was at a party rally last month in Mpraeso in the Eastern Region.
“Just one, not two, one policy that you can say, as for this one, John Mahama did it. He has not yet answered it and he cannot answer it,” Bawumia said to cheers from the audience as he is flanked by Greater Accra Regional minister, Henry Quartey.
“So, if he cannot answer one question, then I wouldn’t bother with 700 questions this time around. I would just leave it at one, I am waiting for the answer and in the future, I will keep asking,” he added.
Bawumia is seen as a front-runner in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearership race slated for later this year, even though he has yet to openly declare his candidature, senior aides have assured that he will run to lead the NPP into election 2024.
John Mahama is currently touring the country seeking the National Democratic Congress (NDC_ flagbearership nod to lead the party into the 2024 polls. He will come up against Kwabena Duffuor and Kojo Bonsu in a primary slated for May 13.
NDC presidential candidate hopeful John Dramani Mahama has said that if re-elected as president in the general elections of 2024, he will revive the Tema Oil Refinery.
According to him, the once vibrant refinery which was producing tonnes of oil products has now been left to collapse under the governing New Patriotic Party.
Addressing party delegates in Ashaiman over the weekend, John Mahama gave the assurance of revamping the refinery to its former glory to create jobs and provide oil products for domestic consumers.
“Since we (NDC) left office, TOR has never processed crude oil again. I remember before we left office, we sent to TOR the first batch of Ghanaian crude oil from our own oil fields for TOR to process. That oil sat there for several years, eventually, they discounted the oil and sold it out without processing it. I can assure you, when NDC comes back, TOR will stand on its feet again”.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Energy Policies and Research (INSTEPR) has said about $500 million was needed to revamp the Tema Oil Refinery.
Since 2018, the Tema Oil Refinery has not been operational due to a lack of crude oil which serves as a raw material for the refinery.
Apart from this, TOR is also faced with other challenges like broken equipment, and piled debt, among others.
It would be recalled that the management of TOR in April 2022 sought approval from the Energy Ministry to engage some private sector players to revamp the oil refinery.
The green light on this development was however given on May 2, 2022.
In what looked like a garden party, the décor, lightning, and entire set up were captured in a breathtaking scene.
Interestingly, as part of the Muslim culture, it was a ‘jalabia and abaya’ costumed party, as all patrons dressed to match in its various colours and styles.
Held at an unidentified location, the party was attended by friends, family, and some members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Notable among individuals present were; Mr. John Mahama’s spokesperson, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, and her husband, Former Chief of Staff Mr. Julius Debrah, and Former NDC Parliamentary Candidate for Suhum, Mandy Otchere among others.
Sharaf Mahama’s girlfriend cum former Miss Malaika winner, Jasmine, the late president Evans Atta Mills’ son, Kofi Mills, and John Mahama’s last daughter, Farida were also present at the party.
John Dramani Mahama, a prospective 2024 presidential contender for the opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC), claims that party agents who will be taken to the National Collation Center, often known as the “strongroom” of the Electoral Commission (EC), will bring their own tea and purchase their own biscuits.
In the 2020 Presidential election petition filed by NDC’s Presidential candidate John Dramani Mahama at the Supreme Court, Rojo Mettle- Nunoo and Dr. Kpessah Whyte who were representatives of the party at the collation Center were blamed for dereliction of duty.
This was after the duo accused the Electoral Commission boss Jane Mensah of ‘tricking’ them to leave the premises to go and see Mr Mahama after which she announced the results on their blind side.
In one of the instances of cross-examination by Justin Amenuvor, the lead counsel of the Electoral Commission (EC), the former Deputy Health Minister Rojo Mettle- Nunoo said “I was offered tea, I wasn’t offered any biscuit” while he waited for the Electoral Commissioner for clarity on some anomaly observed in some of the results.
The Supreme Court stated in its verdict that Rojo Mettle -Nuno and Dr. Kpessah Whyte both second and third witnesses respectively for the petitioner John Mahama should rather blame themselves for leaving the National Collation Centre, that, they did not do their job of strict observation of the collation process therefore must accept the consequences.
Addressing delegates of the NDC at Ashaley Botwe in Greater Accra Region, on Tuesday as part of nationwide campaign tour ahead of the NDC’s Presidential Primaries, John Mahama said the party is going to be extra vigilant in 2024 election adding [on lighter note ] that, the party’s representatives at the strongroom will be provided their own tea and biscuits.
“We are not going to sleep. We are going to match them at the collation centers. We will be in the collation centers until the last ballot is accounted for. e are going to Match them in the EC’s strongroom. This time we don’t want tea we don’t want biscuit. Those we select to go to the strongroom we will give them our own tea and we will buy them digestive Biscuits to go to the strongroom”.
Mr. Mahama strongly stated that packing EC with activists of the ruling New Patriotic Party will not deter the NDC’s resolve to police the election results.
“Because they are afraid of losing the 2024 election they have started putting NPP activists as members of the Electoral Commission so that they can control the referee but when I say it is a Do or Die affair it means that it is a critical election whether they put NPP chairman on the electoral commission we shall match them boot for boot. We are going to match them at the polling stations we don’t Wana cheat anybody, but we don’t want anybody to cheat us. So we are going to mark them at the polling station and make sure that no extra ballot papers come from somewhere into that ballot box”.
Mr. Mahama charged branch and constituency executives of the NDC to actively get involved in the electoral processes in their respective polling stations and be very vigilant .
“Elections are won or lost at the polling stations..and in all your branches you have polling station. Vigilance at the polling stations is going to be in your custody. Campaigning in the polling station is going to be in your care and so we are going to rely on you to make sure that the election in your polling station is going to be free, fair and transparent. And we are putting in a robust system to be able to transmit out results and you the branch and constituency executives are going to be involved. It is a new system we will come and explain it to you”
The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has indicated that former President John Dramani Mahama will not get a refund of his already paid electricity bills.
Managing Director of the Company, Samuel Dubik Mahama, made this known during an interview on Peace FM’s Kokrokoo morning show, where he said ECG regrets allowing the former President to foot his own bills when the state had a responsibility to absorb the cost.
“I won’t put the blame at his doorsteps or make it political, it is my office, we were supposed to read his meter and take action by informing him that we will handle it, so, we now have put those structures in place after a very comprehensive conversation with the Chief of Staff,” he said on the show.
This is after the former President in an exclusive interview with TV3 last year disclosed that all bills the state must cater for, including his electricity and water bills, have not been attended to since he left office in 2017. Mr Mahama emphasised that he pays them himself.
His claim has been confirmed by the ECG MD who attributed the anomaly to failure of the company to execute its mandate as required.
He explained that although all bills of former President John Agyekum Kufour have been duly submitted to the Chief of Staff for payment, however, Mr Mahama had already (personally) been paying his own bills at the time the company reached out to him.
“…so, we had a meeting with the Chief of Staff and she told us her piece of mind and she told us exactly what we have to do because a lot of people would like to drop the problem at the political doorstep which is wrong,” he stated.
He further sent a passionate appeal to the public not to politicise the matter and another appeal to the former President to forgo what he has already paid while ECG explored a way to deal with the matter going forward.
“I’ve requested a meeting with him and his aides so that we can see the way forward. I’ll plead with him to let go of what he has already paid and going forward we will take care of the rest,” he assured.
The Managing Director of theElectricity Company of Ghana(ECG), Samuel Dubik Mahama has said that the company regrets allowing former President John Dramani Mahama pay for electricity consumed.
According to him, the business is in charge of reading the former president’s meter and delivering the bills to the Chief of Staff’s office for payment, a part the company has failed to play.
“We collate the bills of the former Presidents and take them to the Chief of Staff to pay. Former President Kufour’s bills were with us. We’ve given them to the Chief of Staff, and she has worked on them. We also had former President John Mahama’s own… We got in touch with him, and we realized that he has already been paying his own bills. So moving forward, we will discuss with him so that his bills will be absorbed,” he said.
The Managing Director explained that the company will rectify the situation to ensure that the former Presidentdoes not pay his own electricity bills going forward.
“So, from now onwards we are going to have discussions with him (John Mahama) so that moving forward it would be absorbed.
“I won’t put the blame at his doorsteps or make it political, it is my office, we were supposed to read his meter and take action by informing him that we will handle it, so, we now have put those structures in place after a very comprehensive conversation with the Chief of Staff.
“…so, we had a meeting with the Chief of Staff and she told us her piece of mind and she told us exactly what we have to do because a lot of people would like to drop the problem at the political doorstep which is wrong,” he stated.
He added that the Chief of Staff criticized the company for not fulfilling its obligations to former President Mahama the same way it does for former President Kufuor.
In 2022, former President Mahama disclosed that since he left office in 2017, the only benefit he receives from the government is his monthly pension. He added that he pays all his utility bills, which he believes should have been covered by the government.
“I receive only my monthly pension like President Kufuor and President Rawlings was receiving before he died. That is all I get.
“I pay the electricity bill for my house and my office, I pay the water bill for my house and my office. I live in my own accommodation so the State does not pay me anything for accommodation,” Mr Mahama said.
Pollster Ben Ephson has predicted a landslide win for Vice President in the 2024 election should he be given the nod as the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
“If Bawumia is made the flagbearer of NPP, he comes with two main advantages; that is many Christians feel comfortable with him even though he is a Muslim and Muslims who used to vote for the NDC would switch and vote for NPP.
“The Muslims have now noticed that the NDC has taken them for granted for far too long because they don’t take Muslims for even running mate,” he asserted.
He also stated that former President John Dramani Mahama will have it difficult winning the 2024 presidential election.
According to him, the former president will most certainly win the flagbearership of the opposition National Democratic Congress but will face a bigger challenge in winning the presidency.
“Mahama will win but it is 2024 that will be his problem. Mahama will win the NDC slot, he will win easily but 2024 is going to be his problem,” he stated during an interview on Hello FM.
Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party, the two main leading political parties are set to elect their flagbearers.
In the NPP race, Mr Ephson has predicted a landslide win for Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia who is one of the lead contenders.
In an interview with Onua TV in early April, Ben Ephson said Dr Bawumia will go ahead to win the presidency if he is elected the flagbearer of the NPP.
