I never said Mahama is a drunkard so I won't apologise — Atta Akyea fires back at NDC

The Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South, Samuel Atta Akyea, has rejected calls for him to apologise to the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, John Dramani Mahama, for supposedly referring to him (Mahama) as a drunkard.

Atta Akyea indicated that there is nothing for him to apologise for because he never referred to Mahama as a drunkard, modernghana.com reports.

He said that he only praised the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, in his statement and made no reference to Mahama.

“I never said former President John Dramani Mahama is a drunkard. Where is he gleaning that meaning from? If you see the whole story, what I was saying is that we are very blessed to have a very cultured man as an economist and Ghana has never had an economist as President.

“What is the bonus is that the man is very disciplined and he doesn’t drink any alcohol. And I wouldn’t retract from that. These are facts,” he is quoted to have said.

Background:

Addressing a crowd in the Eastern Region, Samuel Atta Akyea encouraged Ghanaians to remain optimistic about the prospect of excellent governance under Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia's leadership.

"Ghana is fortunate to have an economist who is composed, knowledgeable, and abstains from alcohol. We are truly blessed. Ghana is on the verge of having a president with wisdom, a leader who is astute and refrains from drinking alcohol," he said.

The NDC condemned him for the utterance in a press statement signed by General Secretary Fifi Kwetey.

"The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has taken note of the unfortunate and baseless remarks made by Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea, Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South Constituency, during a mini-rally held on 28th August 2024.

"Hon. Atta Akyea, in his address, made a reckless and unfounded allegation suggesting that the NDC's Flagbearer, H.E. John Dramani Mahama, is a drunkard and an alcoholic.

"The NDC is appalled by this descent into the gutter by a senior member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who should know better. Such comments not only undermine the decency of political discourse but also expose the desperation of the NPP in the face of an imminent electoral defeat.

"It is deeply regrettable that instead of focusing on issues that matter to the Ghanaian people, the NPP has resorted to personal attacks and character assassination," part of the press statement said.

The NDC argued that given the MP's calibre, he should have known better with his utterances.

The party cautioned Atta Akyea that if he failed to issue an apology to Mahama they would retaliate.

BAI/ ADG

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