Former President John Mahama has downplayed threats of a ban by some members of the Akyem ethnic group in the Eastern region over the controversial ‘Akyem Sakawa’ tag.
The Akyem group, Concerned Citizens of Okyeman, said the former president should apologise for sharing an article on the controversial Agyapa deal by lawmaker Isaac Adongo which used the labelling. They demanded an apology within 72hours.
Commenting on the issue on Accra-based Class FM, the NDC flagbearer said he has not abused any ethnic group.
“Nobody bans anyone from going anywhere…we shouldn’t go there because if other people say they are banning other people what kind of country are we going to have. I have not said anything…I have not abused Akyem people. Like I said there are many Akyem people in my party why would I say anything insulting to them.?
“It didn’t come to me as anything that I thought about, I saw his post I just reposted it. For me, it was the arguments he made there that were very cogent that’s why I reposted it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the National Organiser of the opposition National Democratic Congress George Opare Addo says he will resign from the party if the former President apologises over the comment.
” If that happens I will leave the NDC. Because there is nothing to apologise for. The article was in the context of those who are involved in the deal, so there is nothing to apologise for,” he told Bola Ray on Starr Chat.
Spokesperson for the NDC 2020 campaign James Agyenim Boateng has also said the former President will not apologise over development.
“The point that Adongo made was that certain people close to the President are involved in some shady deal. There’s no apology to render because Mr. Mahama has not used the word being attributed to him.
“Those demanding an apology need to show they are members of government and also need to show they are behind the shady deal. This is a deliberate attempt to overshadow the NDC manifesto and we can clearly see-through.
