Nana Akomea
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has cleared the air concerning a video circulating on social media that shows then candidate Nana Akufo-Addo, now President, receiving something in an envelope that NPP opponents are claiming is bribe.
Former Director of Communication for NPP, Nana Akomea, who parried the allegation at a press conference yesterday at the party’s headquarters, said the video put out by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) was a desperate effort by a ‘sinking’ NDC to directly tag President Nana Akufo-Addo as someone who took bribes when he is not.
According to Mr. Akomea, the video was taken when candidate Akufo-Addo was receiving cash donation towards the NPP’s 2016 campaign but not the time that he was the President.
Mr. Akomea said if members of the NDC wanted to talk about a President who received bribes directly, then they should talk about their presidential candidate, Mr. John Mahama, who was once President of the country.
“It was then President Mahama who took a Ford vehicle directly from a contractor who wanted more contracts and also got himself directly in the Airbus scandal when he was also the Vice-President.”
The former Communication Director of the NPP said because credible polls had shown that the ruling party was going to win next week’s election massively, that was why they had resorted to mudslinging and vile propaganda.
“Despite whatever misgivings the NDC has, the record shows you cannot accuse President Akufo-Addo of engaging himself personally in corruption. There can, however, be no debate. President Mahama, between 2009 and 2016, engaged in conduct which clearly indicted himself and the high office of President into direct personal corruption.”
He wondered why former President Mahama, who never believed in ‘freebies’ since he believed that free things did not come with quality, was now promising free things including now, school fees for students in tertiary institutions, with few days to go for elections.
“Former President Mahama is very indecisive, obey the wind leader, inconsistent and unreliable. He is now begging Ghanaians to give him another chance to come and correct his mistakes; but he has not told Ghanaians which mistakes that he committed when he was the President and how he was going to correct those mistakes.
“Former President Mahama cancelled training allowances for trainee nurses and teachers but when President Nana Akufo-Addo restored it he was also now supporting it,” he said, stressing that the former President did not have principles and integrity to lead the country again.
He said unlike former President Mahama, current President Nana Akufo-Addo has kept all his electoral promises including Free SHS, One District One Factory, One Village One Dam, One Constituency One Ambulance and many more.
He also said President Nana Akufo-Addo had given Ghanaians bold, decisive and focused leadership and had been able to effectively manage Covid-19 crisis, while former President Mahama messed up the ‘dumsor’ crisis during his tenure.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr