NPP gurus angry with Akufo-Addo galamsey pledge

Some leading members of the New Patriotic Party are seething with rage over President Akufo-Addo’s pledge to “put his presidency on the line” as his commitment to end illegal small scale mining popularly called “galamsey”, in Ghana.

According to the peeved NPP bigwigs, the President’s comment could court hatred for the party and that could truncate the governing party’s stay in power after the next general elections in 2020.

Though the NPP kingpins are not against President Akufo-Addo’s pledge to fight galamsey, they noted that his promise to put his presidency on line to fight the menace does not inspire confidence in party supporters that the party in power can go beyond first term.

Speaking the minds of the many NPP big shots and supporters brooding over the President’s comment was no less a person that former Member of Parliament for Upper Denkyira West, Benjamin Kofi Aryeh.

According to the former MP, President Akufo-Addo’s statement is a statement of defeat and surrender which should not have come from the President, insisting the President’s declaration gives an indication of his uncertainty in winning the next polls if he pursues the fight against galamsey.

Hon Aryeh said President Akufo-Addo could still have made his point about fighting “galamsey”, without having to make such a “negative statement”. “I don’t agree with the statement the President made; putting his presidency on the line. No! Normally those negative connotations should be avoided”, he noted on Adom Fm’s Badwam.

The president, Nana Akufo-Addo, speaking at a forum against illegal mining Monday July 10, 2017, said he will put his presidency on the line with a commitment to end the illegal small scale mining popularly called “galamsey” in Ghana.

But the former NPP MP said such statements are not helpful for the President and the NPP as it has a possibility of demoralizing persons who have high hopes in him and may have adverse results on his votes at the next elections.

“He is in to succeed. The President must succeed. More so, everyone who believes Akufo-Addo and the party must stay in government may get discouraged if he makes statements of the sort”.

Hon Aryeh noted that the President Akufo-Addo should speak from a positive perspective, assuring Ghanaians of his role in ensuring the menace is dealt with but not showing signs of “weakness”.

“The President should speak from the positive side, saying he knows he has the support of the public and so we are going to succeed and move on perhaps with a higher number of votes next time around,” he stated.

Reports are that some kingpins of the NPP are worried over some of President Akufo-Addo’s actions and pronouncements, saying it could hurt the party’s chances of retaining power in the 2020 elections.