President John Mahama’s comment that the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has become so intolerant that anybody who speaks against its flag bearer Nana Akufo-Addo is flayed and taken to the cleaners, shows his “crass” ignorance of the constitution of the party, Nana Obiri Boahen, a Deputy General Secretary of the NPP, has said.
Speaking at the NDC’s campaign launch in Cape Coast on Sunday, 14 August, Mr Mahama said: “Developments in the largest opposition party threaten the democratic health of our country. It is said that the nature of an organisation is founded on its leadership. The largest opposition party has prided itself as the apostle of democracy and this has metamorphosed in recent times into a very intolerant organisation.”
“Those who can hurl the most verbal abuses are the most respected and hailed in that party. They are patted on the back by the leadership for doing a good job.
“The soul of the party has been captured by the hawkish and intolerant fringe and this group has cowed the moderates and other level-headed members of the party into silence. Anyone who raises his or her voice against the current leadership of the party is promptly set upon in the media and on other platforms. And even the former president, on whose record the party is running, has not been spared his share of these insults.
“The verbal abuse has led to a culture of silence in the party and even though the emperor is wearing no clothes, everybody is afraid to tell him so. The party has become intolerant of dissenting opinion and those who have spoken out have been promptly dealt with, removed from office, and threatened with physical harm.”
But reacting to these comments by Mr Mahama on Monday, 15 August, Mr Obiri Boahen said: “I sincerely believe that that statement by the president is a clear exhibition of his ignorance of the NPP constitution.”
“By saying so, he was advertising his crass ignorance and perhaps uncontrollable ignorance of the NPP’s constitution, the reason being that Nana Akufo-Addo has never suspended any individual out of his own volition. The suspended members came about as a result of the operation of the NPP’s constitution. So, the president can wallow in his ignorance, I don’t begrudge him and I don’t think mature minds and level-minded Ghanaians will begrudge him,” Mr Boahen told Citi FM.
Source: Ghana/AccraFM.com
