This however appears like a U-turn to what the president said in a radio interview on OTEC FM in the Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi, earlier in the week when he was presented with the reservations of the people of Kwabre.
According to the journalist who interviewed the president on OTEC FM, the people of Kwabre and Manso had warned that until their roads are fixed, politicians should not return to them seeking for votes.
“The people of Kwabre and Manso, we know they voted massively for Nana, they have asked me to inform the president that if their roads are not fixed, they will be pained and in 2024, they will vote against the NPP.
“No problem, no problem. I am saying people make those kinds of threats, me, they don’t frighten me. Somebody votes for you, somebody supports you, it is because they want you to do things for them, so I understand that,” the president responded.
Angered by the president’s comments, many Ghanaians have called him out, making references to how he (President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo) came begging for votes from Ghanaians but is only now throwing it in their faces when they are demanding for accountability from him.
In his defense, a number of top politicians within the president’s party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), have come out to offer their reasons or explanations for what they believed the president was actually saying.
Here they are:
Eugene Arhin
Eugene Arhin, the Director of Communications at the Presidency, explained in a press briefing with journalists that contrary to claims that the president called the bluff of Ghanaians, that was not the case.
According to him, the president is focused on delivering the mandate handed him by the people of Ghana and so when he said such a thing, which was a response to a question, he was not far from the truth.
“I don’t think the president was calling anybody’s bluff. The host asked him a particular question and the response the president gave was to what the host was saying.
“Indeed, if you look at the package of road construction that is currently going on in the Kwabre and the Manso areas, I mean, what the president stated in his response was that I don’t think anybody threatening that I will not vote for him should be something that he should be worried about.
“At the end of the day, his focus is to make sure that he delivers. Once he delivers and the road infrastructure is there and you still decide to go and vote for another party, that is your problems,” he clarified.
Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh
The Minister of Energy and Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, also came in with his defense of his employer, President Nana Akufo-Addo.
According to Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh (NAPO), no party, including the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), is more committed to developing the Asante land than the NPP.
“John Mahama came here to insult us, but I did not hear journalists on the radio station speaking about it. Some even said they did not hear it. But as soon as Nana Addo makes a pronouncement, everybody starts berating him.
“Let me tell you this, if you want a government that will develop the Ashanti Region, it is the NPP government. If Nana Addo had succeeded President Kufuor, Kumasi would now be called the Golden City. Because an NPP government did not succeed Kufuor, Ashanti became the bola (garbage) city.
“Let us not be ungrateful. Ashanti's never forget. Let us not be ungrateful because Ashanti remembers the good deeds done to it. Ashanti will continue to support the NPP by being loyal till the time Jesus comes.
“I can say it confidently that anyone who will vote for the NDC does not want the progress of the Ashanti land. For six years now, there has been no shortage of food, and if we do not thank God and show appreciation to Nana Addo, then we are inviting curses on ourselves,” he said in Twi.
Ernest Owusu-Bempah
A statement issued by Ernest Owusu-Bempah, a Deputy Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), said that rather than what people thought of the president’s comments, it was actually a case of the president taking responsibility for the challenges.
He added that the president went on to give assurances that he was going to work on resolving the issues.
“The president has been misquoted. The president said it is his utmost responsibility to develop the nation and he will do that. If someone says he will vote against him it is the person’s right. It was clear the President was accepting responsibility.
“The buck stops with him and he says he will deal with it. The skewed publication is out of malice or being mischief,” portions of his statement said.
Henry Kwabena Kokofu
Another top NPP personality who jumped to the defense of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo after that comment was the Chief Executive of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Henry Kwabena Kokofu.
In his defense, he said President Nana Akufo-Addo made no error in his responses.
He added that no one should take offence to the president's statements.
"The President meant you can voice your concerns. You can ask any questions at all but for you to use intimidation against him will not push him," he said.
He also assured the people of the Ashanti Region that the president will complete their developmental projects.
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These 4 NPP men have defended the president