President Akufo-Addo’s decision to neglect constituents of Ekumfi in the Central region, for voting the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) candidate out was an exhibition of vindictiveness, according to a stalwart of the party, Dr. Richard Baah Amoako.
The former head of the Political Science department of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), who once contested for national Chairman of the NPP says a president shouldn’t speak like the way Mr. Akufo-Addo did.
He statement is in relation to the President’s ‘no vote no development’ comment to the people of Ekumfi constituency in the Central region.
“Now that you said you’re honest with them you neglected them and the country is in a tight spot, if you don’t do anything else again, what will happen? Would they come back and vote for your party? Because you’ve shown a little bit of vindictiveness there and if nothing changes, should they also change? No, because they assume that they’ve seen the real you and they are not going to change,” he said on Alfred Ocansey’s Ghana Tonight on TV3 Wednesday, January 17, 2024.
“If they voted for you once, you had a minister and he lost and you neglected them, what are you going to do for people who never voted for you like Voltarians? How are you going to explain to them. Is that the reason why the whole place is flooded, nothing happens?” he quizzed.
Dr. Baah Amoako said he is surprised the President’s advisers couldn’t guide him on the right thing to say. “I’m just surprised that his people that help him, are unable to engage him with what he is going to say and how he is going to say it, role-play it and then say it.”
President Akufo-Addo had admitted that he looked away from the development challenges of Ekumfi because the constituents voted against the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) candidate, Francis Kingsley Ato Cudjoe.
According to the President, during his first term when Mr. Cudjoe was the Member of Parliament for Ekumfi, he made him a deputy minister and a substantive minister in order to channel some development projects to the constituency.
However, following Mr. Ato Cudjoe’s defeat in the 2020 elections, he (the President) ignored the needs of the constituency.
“I made Ato Cudjoe (an indigene of Ekumfi) a minister and a deputy minister so he could do something there for you. But unfortunately he lost his seat in the next election and it’s all part of the reasons I also ignored you for a while, I must be honest with the truth. But I’ve heard you and the year has just started so by the time the year ends, I’ll see what I can do,” President Akufo-Addo assured.
The President’s admission followed a demand from the Kyedomhemaa of Ekumfi traditional area, Nana Enyimfua III, for the state to put up a project in the area to help the youth to make a living.
The queen mother, during a visit to the Presidency to thank Mr. Akufo-Addo for renovating the Asomdwe Park –the burial grounds of late President Mills –said the state is yet to honour any of the promises it made to the family of late Prof. Mills and the community since the demise of their kinsman.
She pleaded with the President to fulfill at least one of the promises made to the traditional area, so that the future generation can also count on it as what they benefited for the service their son rendered to the state.
“I am ashamed when I even tell people that I’m Attah Mills’ queen mother. This is because people always ask why we did not make the government do anything for us at Ekumfi, if I’m from that family. It is also shameful, because we were promised of something at Otuam, and the family secured a land for it, but nothing was done.
“Whenever we pour libation, we mention your (Akufo-Addo) name not to forget the promise you gave us the time you visited Ekumfi and told us he was a friend you played football with,” the queen mother reminded the President.
President Akufo-Addo assured the family that he will honour his promise, but admitted he redirected his attention from Ekumfi because they voted out the NPP MP.
