'Obinim sticker' comment was a joke – Bawa Mogtari

Ex President John Dramani Mahama’s comment that President Akufo Addo and his government needs an ‘Obinim Sticker’ to perform well in office was made in jest and should not be taken seriously by Ghanaians, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, aide to the former President has said.

According to her, President Akufo Addo and his government should not take the comment to heart as Mr Mahama didn’t mean what he said but only joined the joke that has trended on social media for the past few weeks.

Former President Mahama addressing members of opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) after a Unity Walk at Wa in the Upper West Region on Saturday during mocked what he says is the “super-incompetence” of the Akufo-Addo government saying they need an ‘Obinim sticker’ to perform.

“I have been watching social media lately, and there’s something that has come, and I think it cures everything. It’s the Obinim sticker, the President and his government need an Obinim sticker. “If it really works, then I think they need the sticker. So I am saying that we cannot depend on their incompetence, we need to work hard to gain the support of the electorate.”

But former President Maahama has been scathingly attacked for this comments which some have described as unstatesman, with others saying his handlers are doing him a great disservice

Executive Director of Danquah Institute, Dr Kingsley Nyarko for instance has said the comment from the former President shows a drowning and desperate man seeking straw to survive in order to be relevant and increase his chances of leading his party in the 2020 presidential contest. However reacting to the backlash, Joyce Bawa Mogtari said the comment was not meant to be a rude jab at President Mahama.

“That was a jest, obviously Obinim sticker has become a topical discussion considering the notoriety of that particular pastor that he was speaking about. Indeed it was a joke that was all over the place over the last few weeks. This sparring has come to stay with us, there are always very interesting moments where you say something good. Everybody says that the stickers are supposed to cure everything, so let’s leave it in the context as I indicated earlier that, that was a very interesting joke that we’ve all been using.

“Normally these things will enter your thoughts as you’re speak and when you try to give an example they would come up and so we should keep it in the spirit of our democracy. It wasn’t a rude jab on insult or anything, just so say this is what some pastor is saying and I have also picked it up, we can try this for a change and see what happens,” she told Starr FM Monday.