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Deputy General Secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Lawyer Obiri Boahen, has issued a stern warning to groups of persons or individuals who may want to cause panic or chaos for their personal ambitions.
His warning follows the comment made by the 2020 Flagbearer of the NDC that he sees the 2020 elections as a ‘do or die’ affair.
“We were clearly robbed but we accepted the verdict for the sake of peace, but I want to state here that the next elections would be won or lost at the polling station. So at the polling station, it will be do or die. I am not saying all die be die. I’m saying it will be do or die because the right thing must be done.
“We will do everything to ensure that the election is free and fair. We will not cheat the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and we don’t expect anyone to cheat us either. Let the elections be peaceful and fair,” he added.
This comment has been widely condemned with his critics comparing this comment to the ‘All Die Be Die’ comment which was made by the then President, Nana Akufo-Addo while in opposition.
Former President John Mahama’s critics have since called on him to retract the comments as they claim it connotes violence.
But the former President will have none of that and has rather defended his comments.
“I don’t retract, the next election is a do or die affair for the NDC so we must do the needful. You must be at the collation centre and make sure the right thing is done, don’t abdicate your responsibilty at that level and then expect that and then expect that after somebody has stolen the election, you’ll go to the Supreme Court and then expect that somebody will see if they will turn the elections for you, they won’t do it. So I don’t retract [the comments] it’s a do or die affair…,” he said on Moon Lite FM.
Reacting to the comment on Angel FM’s Anɔpa Bɔfoɔ, Nana Obiri Boahen said former President Mahama cannot be a threat or an impediment to the NPP’s progress.
He called on the former first gentleman of the land and his NDC party to note that there the forefathers of the DanQuah-Busia-Dombo tradition are not cowards and can’t be intimidated.
“Dr Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah tried it in a referendum in 1964-65 but he couldn’t succeed, Acheampong tried in 1972 and 1977 but also didn’t succeed. So if President Mahama doesn’t know I want to tell him that he shouldn’t try, I said he shouldn’t try at all.
“When he went to Sunyani he said ‘do or die’ is an idiomatic expression right….okay, then I’m borrowing his own words in Bono dialect that ‘Sɛ wo di si a, metwa’ [I will retaliate]. Let him try and see. President Mahama is just joking I said you people should tell him he’s just joking”, Lawyer Obiri Boahen reiterated.
To this end, the Deputy General Secretary warned that the intimidating tricks the opposition party used to win power prior to the 2008 General Election won’t occur anymore in any upcoming polls in the country.
He also clarified that his response to John Mahama is not a sign of war nor an attempt to incite sympathisers of the party to cause mayhem.
