John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, has dissented to the views of the vice-presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, alias NAPO, who claimed that the achievements of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government trump every other administration in the country, including that of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president.
Speaking at the launch of the NDC’s campaign on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Tamale, John Mahama stated that the evidence does not support NAPO's statement and that the comparison is demeaning to the legacy of Ghana’s first president.
John Mahama stated that a government that has left over two million Ghanaian youth unemployed and uneducated cannot be touted as the best in the history of the country.
Mahama, who described the Akufo-Addo government as ‘useless,’ believes that the country has not seen a worse administration than the current one.
“The statistics tell us that almost two million of our youth are at home and not in school or working. They are just sitting at home idle, and most of them are living in their parents’ houses because they don’t have an income to start a life of their own.
“The statistics tell us that unemployment has risen from just above 8% in 2016 to 14.7% in 2024, and yet they say things have never been this better. They have the audacity to compare themselves to our first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. How can you compare this useless government that has led Ghana into such a crisis to the government of Kwame Nkrumah?” he said.
NAPO, the running mate of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, dropped a bombshell at his unveiling when he boastfully stated that not even ‘your’ Kwame Nkrumah’s government can be compared to that of Akufo-Addo.
Addressing a gathering of party bigwigs and supporters on Tuesday, June 9, 2024, for his official unveiling in Kumasi, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh emphasized that not even Ghana's first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, comes close to President Akufo-Addo when it comes to spearheading development in the country’s history.
“It has never happened in the history of Ghana. If President Akufo-Addo retires, I can hit my chest and state that since the nation’s inception in 1957, there has not been a president who has helped the state more than Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
“I am saying that from 1957 to now, whether you pick ‘your’ Kwame Nkrumah... there is nobody who has led Ghana and protected the country or developed Ghana more than Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo,” he stated.
Following public backlash, NAPO apologized for the statement, noting that he did not intend to denigrate Ghana’s first president.
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