20/03/2016
Nana Addo’s tribute reads: “I am deeply saddened and
distraught by the news of the death
of my lifelong friend, Jake Otanka
Obetsebi Lamptey, which sad
event occurred in the early hours
of today, Palm Sunday, March 20, in London, in the United Kingdom. “The death of a friend of long
standing brings up so many
emotions – grief, sense of loss,
reflections on friendship, the stark
reality of mortality, and the
presence of the Living God. Indeed, Jake and I grew up
together and forged a close
friendship in our childhood, very
similar to that our fathers shared,
which led to the significant roles
they both played in the formation of the United Gold Coast Convention
(UGCC), the movement that
initiated the struggle for Ghana’s
freedom and independence. They
were both members of the
legendary Big Six of Ghanaian history. The UGCC is the mother
party of the New Patriotic Party
(NPP). The ties between us were
considerable. “As a founding member of the
NPP, Otanka, Jake to others, first
served as Chairman of the
Publicity Committee of the Party in
1992, and subsequently rose to the
position of Greater Accra Regional Chairman. Candidate J.A Kufuor
appointed him as his Campaign
Manager in the successful election
campaign of 2000. Again, in 2004,
he was appointed Campaign
Manager by President John Agyekum Kufuor in the campaign
that led to the NPP retaining power
that year. He served as President
Kufuor’s first Minister for
Presidential Affairs and Chief of
Staff, and then subsequently as his Minister for Tourism and
Modernization of the Capital, and
also as his Minister for
Information. Colleagues in the NPP
government will readily attest to the
dedication and selflessness with which he served Mother Ghana.
His love for the party and desire to
see the NPP regain power resulted
in his election in 2010 as National
Chairman of the NPP, but lost his
bid for re-election in 2014. “Undoubtedly, he made an
immense contribution to the NPP
and to Mother Ghana. A proud Ga,
he was an honest, patriotic and
distinguished son of Ghana,
whose loyalty to Ghana was unalloyed, and who never wavered
in his adherence to the values and
principles of the Danquah-Dombo-
Busia tradition, which was, for him,
the noblest tradition in Ghanaian
politics. He was, nevertheless, to his credit, a tolerant and
responsible person who made
many friendships across the
political divide of our country. “A gregarious and fun-loving man,
with an exceptional sense of
humour, I will miss him immensely.
I am confident all true devotees of
the NPP and well-meaning
Ghanaians will miss him too. “A man with strong family values, I
extend my deepest condolences
and sympathies to his dear wife,
Esther, and their children. “May the soul of Jake Otanka
Obetsebi Lamptey rest in perfect
peace in the bosom of the Almighty
until the last Day of the
Resurrection when we meet
again.” ……signed…… Nana Akufo-Addo 2016 NPP Presidential Candidate
