Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil, has said that a third-term idea for President John Dramani is unpopular in Ghana.
Although President Mahama has said he is not interested in a third term, Bentil cautioned that it will cause President John Dramani Mahama huge collateral damage if he attempts to run for a third term.
“That debate for the third term is not over in the NDC. Some say if there is a pathway to a third term, they will take it,” Bentil said on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday, January 3.
Reacting to the assurance of President Mahama that he is not interested in a third term, Bentil said, “his utterance now, given history, cannot be taken seriously because of what has taken place.
“It will cause him a lot of collateral damage, a third is extremely unpopular,” he said.
For his part, the CEO of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, said that President John Dramani Mahama has already stated his position on the third discussion and brought a closure on it that he has no interests.
Edudzi Tameklo stated that President Mahama will not go against his decision.
“The leader has already put out his position on the matter. He is not a flip-flopper; his yes is yes, and his no is now. He is very smart at that, he realised that as humans as we are, people will come up with this view, so he has to put a stop to the clamouring for this right from the beginning,” he said on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday, January 3.
His comment came when the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, had criticised party members calling on President John Dramani Mahama to seek a third term in office, describing such demands as self-serving and driven by personal political ambition.
Speaking at the 44th Anniversary celebration of the 31st December Revolution on Wednesday, December 31, Mr Kwetey said the calls do not reflect a genuine commitment to the ideals of the NDC but rather point to growing sycophancy within the party.
He urged party members to prioritise unity, principle, and national interest over individual gain, stressing that excessive praise-singing undermines the party’s core values.
“It saddens me when I see so much sycophancy creeping into our party. Some people seem to believe that singing the praises of a leader is the only way they can survive politically. That is why you hear calls for a so-called third term. It is nothing but pure sycophancy and bootlicking of the highest order,” he said.
Mr Kwetey recalled that the late former President Jerry John Rawlings, founder of the NDC, was never pressured to seek a third term, noting that the current calls betray a lack of loyalty to both the party and the country.
“If you truly love this country and this party, you will not engage in such sycophancy. These are people who believe praise will earn them opportunities, but that is not what the NDC stands for,” he added.
