The presidential nominee of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, should “man up” and name the specific officials of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) that he claimed rejoiced over the death of former President John Atta Mills, Mr Bernard Allotey Jacobs, the Central regional chairman of the NDC, has dared the three-time flag bearer.
Dr Nduom, while addressing a rally at Cape Coast on Thursday September 15, asked the electorate not to be hoodwinked into voting for the governing party in the December 7 polls as they did four years ago since the NDC was not sincere with its promises, adding that its leading members publicly feigned sorrow at the passing of Professor Atta Mills in 2012, while privately stating that his sudden death actually enabled them to win the 2012 ballot.
“Mills was our kinsman and he became the president. Some people criticised and attacked him until he died. And some of the NDC people themselves thanked God that Mills died. Is that not strange? And after his death they came back here to tell us to replace him with another person from the Central Region,” Dr Nduom said.
“After all that, they go about provoking us that if Mills had not died, the NDC wouldn’t be in government today. … It appears as though they deliberately pushed him to the seat so they can commit the wrongs behind him.”
But reacting to comments by the businessman-cum-politician, Mr Jacobs said the “kaakaamotobi” (grotesque) remarks should have come from a party official of much lower rank than Dr Nduom.
He said he had so much respect for the Groupe Nduom CEO given the numerous job opportunities he had offered the people of his native Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem (KEEA) constituency and wondered why he would condescend into making comments not befitting his high standing in society.
“These are all political rhetoric and I don’t expect him to be saying these. … I have that modicum of respect for him for the one reason that he has employed several natives of KEEA in his businesses there, but he should not be making public comments at the level of gossip by nursery, kindergarten or JHS pupils on their way home from school,” Mr Jacobs told Accra News Thursday, further describing Dr Nduom as a “self-centred” politician who associated with the first NDC government of 1993-1997 before aligning himself with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) when it won power in 2001, during which he was made a Cabinet Minister.
He, thus, urged the former KEEA MP to be bold and come out with the names of such persons in the governing party who had expressed delight at the death of Professor Mills and how such death paved the way for the NDC’s triumph in 2012. “…He should mention the names of the NDC officials in question. He should drop names if he is a man,” he dared the business magnate.
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