Nana Addo must pledge to accept election petition verdict - Group

A pro-Government group, Inside Ghana, has described as “a threat” to Ghana’s democracy, the failure by the main opposition New Patriotic Party’s 2012 Presidential Candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to publicly state his readiness to accept the verdict of the Supreme Court in the election petition.

The group, in a statement issued on Thursday May 2, 2013 and signed by the Convener, Mr. George Spencer Quaye said: “The failure of Nana Akufo-Addo to state publicly that he will respect and comply by the ruling of the Supreme Court is a grave threat to our democracy”.

It said it was important for Nana Akufo Addo to show commitment that he will not reject the final verdict of the Supreme Court after the hearing.

Inside Ghana also questioned the democratic credentials of Nana Akufo-Addo over what the group described as his inability to call to order, prominent members of the party who, the group claims have been chanting war rhetoric over the election petition and “bastardising” the Electoral Commission which declared President John Mahama as the winner of the 2012 polls.

It said Nana Addo’s “silence on war chants by leading members of the NPP is equally worrisome, and Inside Ghana believes these are traits of anti-democracy and anarchy”.

“Inside Ghana, therefore, calls on Ghanaians to question the democratic tenets of the New Patriotic Party”, the statement read; adding: “These pseudo-democratic traits have no room or space in a democracy”.

The group said: “The deliberate attacks on the EC and NDC built on falsity and atrocious concoctions only retard the progress of our democracy and must not be allowed to thrive”.

It also wondered why Nana Akufo-Addo has not “apologised for his ‘all die be die’ chant, a situation that can no longer be swept under the carpet”.

Nana Akufo-Addo and his two co-petitioners including his running mate Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and the party’s National Chairman, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey are challenging the validity of the 2012 presidential poll results.

They claim there were widespread irregularities as well as strategically planned rigging, through the collusion of the first respondent, President John Mahama, and the second respondent, the Electoral Commission.

They, therefore, are praying the Supreme Court to annul results in 11,138 polling stations, where they claim, massive and strategic rigging occurred.

Dr Bawumia has been under cross-examination for the past week after he was led in evidence by his Lead Counsel, Philip Addison.