29/05/2015
May 29, 2015
STATEMENT BY NANA AKUFO-ADDO, NPP 2016
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, AT A PRESS
CONFERENCE ON NPP AND ADAMS MAHAMA’S
DEATH ON 29TH MAY, 2015, AT NPP PARTY
HEADQUARTERS, ACCRA
Ladies and gentlemen, a week ago, there was a
painful, horrendous and tragic death in the NPP
family. The Chairman of our party in the Upper
East region was murdered. The circumstances of
the death of Chairman Adams Mahama have
shaken our party and I daresay, our nation, to
depths not normally reached in everyday
discourse. I admit freely to having been shaken
to my inner core, and, thus, cut short my trip to
Europe and returned home the very next day. It
is a tragedy that I pray the Almighty would give
us strength to deal with and spare us from a
repetition ever again. The Adua prayers for
Chairman Adams are scheduled for June 7th in
Bolgatanga, and, until then, we remain in a
state of mourning for our fallen colleague.
Since the tragedy, there has been an outbreak
of a cacophony of voices within our party. There
have been many cries from the heart by party
loyalists and supporters and a sense of despair,
felt by many, has been demonstrated in various
ways. The regional chairmen have led the cry
and they have been followed by other
important, identifiable groups and individuals
within the party. It was to be expected that the
regional chairmen should lead the cry; after all,
Chairman Adams was one of them. It is
especially sad for our party that this tragedy
should befall us right at the time, indeed the
first time, that we have a group of regional
chairmen who have developed such a great
sense of brotherliness among themselves. It is
not surprising, therefore, that they should
consider an attack on one of them as an attack
on all of them. Hopefully, this act of infamy
should bind them even tighter together.
As I have tried to deal with my own personal
loss and heartbreak, I have been listening to
many people and taking on board the
controversies and sentiments that have been
generated. It is my responsibility as flag bearer
to listen and, then, seek to do what is in the
best interest of our party. Having heard so many
people, my first call on all party members and
supporters is to cease fire. The finger pointing,
the name calling, the insults, the lies, the
denigrating of past and current leaders must
stop. They are to be roundly condemned. His
Excellency John Agyekum Kufuor, 2nd President
of the Fourth Republic, remains an icon of our
party and nation, whose legacy we in the NPP
must jealously guard. There is absolutely
nothing to be gained from internal
recriminations within the NPP except to provide
fertile soil for our opponents.
It is unseemly and disrespectful towards the
memory of Chairman Adams that such loud
noises should continue within the party, whilst
we are still in the official mourning period. A
certain amount of outburst induced by the
tragedy is understandable because of the
extreme nature of the tragedy, but that should
not mean that NPP members should behave out
of character.
Now that many sections of the party have
spoken and made their appeals, the party
structures should take over and deal with the
issues that have been raised. Meetings of the
National Executive Committee, the body charged
with responsibility for directing the affairs of the
party and, then, the National Council, the
highest decision making body of the party,
except for the National Annual Delegates’
Conference, should be convened after the Adua
prayers to resolve the issues that we face. I am
confident that these bodies will act in the
collective interest of the party.
None of us in the NPP should forget for one
moment that we have an election to fight and
win in 18 months’ time and that we are in the
middle of selecting our parliamentary candidates
for that purpose; none of us should forget the
desperate state into which our nation has been
plunged; and none of us should forget that the
people of Ghana look to us to rescue our
nation. We dare not jeopardize this sacred trust
by fruitless internal strife. Chairman Adams was
a passionate party man, he wanted and fought
to make possible an NPP victory in 2016. Let us
win it in his memory.
But, perhaps, most important for us
immediately is the need for the law
enforcement agencies to bring a quick resolution
to the despicable, criminal act that took place in
Bolgatanga a week ago. We note the
professionalism so far displayed by them in their
investigations. We expect them to continue to do
so and not to be influenced in any way by
political pressure of any sort. I acknowledge and
appreciate the sentiments expressed by the
President of the Republic with the promise that
justice will be done to Chairman Adams and we
intend to hold him to that promise. It is
unfortunate, but true, that criminal activities
with political undertones in this country have
tended not to be resolved satisfactorily. The
latest example of this is the shooting and killing
of the Nkwanta South DCE some six months ago.
It does not engender public confidence that, up
to today, there has been no word on the
investigations into that crime. We shall not be
satisfied with anything less than the arrest and
successful prosecution of the killers of Chairman
Adams. There should be no ifs and buts.
Whilst we continue with the period of mourning
for Chairman Adams and until the party’s
governing bodies meet, I ask that we normalize
things within our party. This means, for
instance, that the officers of the party, the
National Chairman and the General Secretary in
particular, must have access to their offices at
party headquarters and not be hindered in any
way from being able to conduct their duties. The
NPP way of doing things is to be guided by law
and order and I ask that normalcy return to our
headquarters and party offices. I ask that we
extend mutual respect to each other and we
listen to each other.
I will not tolerate chaos within our party. The
recriminations against ourselves in this period of
healing, I repeat, must stop. On the contrary,
we should all embrace the laudable initiative of
the National Women’s Organiser who is
launching, as from this Sunday here at the party
headquarters, a week of fasting and prayers for
the welfare of the NPP. I have no doubt that,
with the help of Almighty God and by our
collective determination, the storms that are
currently buffeting the great, historic movement
that the NPP represents will soon subside so
that it can fulfil its mission of developing our
nation in freedom.
The NPP is not the first party to face crisis and
the NPP will not be the last party to come out of
its crisis stronger. I want to assure you. I am
confident of our capacity to overcome and we
shall overcome.
Finally, I want to reassure all our members,
supporters and the country at large that I
remain focused on the main project of winning
the election of 2016 and forming an NPP
administration that will restore hope to our
nation. We owe that to the long line of martyrs
for freedom and justice in Ghana, and to the
millions and millions of hardworking Ghanaians
who have seen their efforts destroyed in a
difficult, declining economy. This nation
deserves a competent, compassionate and
honest government and we in the NPP have to
provide it so that Ghana can go back to a bright
future of progress and prosperity. We have no
choice. Come, then, patriots of the NPP, let us
stand together, shoulder to shoulder, in the
cause of the NPP and make it happen for
mother Ghana.
Let me end with a word from Holy Scripture and
pardon me that I take the liberty of amending it
slightly to make my point. Psalm 122, verses
6-8. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: Pray for
the peace of the NPP, Pray for the peace of
Ghana, May they prosper who love you. Peace
be within our walls, Peace be within our homes
and offices. Prosperity within our country and
our communities. For the sake of my brethren
and companions, for the sake of my colleagues
in the NPP and in our country, I will now say,
Peace be within us.
God bless the NPP! God bless Ghana! God bless
Africa!
Thank you.
