Thes top NPP officials have suffered booing in the last few months
The first time it happened with the president, there were many reactions and accusations that the people who orchestrated the unusual action were planted, perhaps by members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC). And then there was another time not too long from the first one, also targeted at President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Again, some people tried to pin the booing incident on a planned action by opposition members. But by the third time, there has been little talk in that regard, but rather, on how disappointing a thing it was for some Ghanaians to be booing their leaders publicly. In this GhanaWeb article, we look back at the six recent incidents where some top officials of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) have been hooted at in public. Atta Akyea chased out of town by angry residents, March 2022: In March 2022, GhanaWeb reported that some angry residents of a town in the Abuakwa South Constituency had chased out their Member of Parliament, Samuel Atta Akyea. In a video shared on Facebook, the MP was seen walking towards a pick-up vehicle, as scores of people hooted and booed at him, sending him away from the area. The MP eventually entered a vehicle, surrounded by people believed to be his close executives, and his security details, and then he was whisked away. The caption of the video, sourced to Ghanaian Citizen TV on Facebook but shared by Benjamin Wayo Mahama, said that the action was undertaken by the angry residents because of failed promises. “NPP MP Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea chased out of town over failed promises by constituents. He is the MP for Abuakwa South in the Eastern Region. Nana Addo is the former MP of that constituency. He is also the Former Minister of Works and Housing,” the caption read. See the video below: Angry Suame artisans pelt Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu with sachet water, July 2022: In July 2022, reports emerged on how some artisans at Suame Magazine in the Suame Constituency of the Ashanti Region hooted and pelted their Member of Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, with sachets of water for allegedly denying them development. The MP, who is also the Majority Leader of Parliament, had gone to inspect the abandoned Suame highway which the artisans said had claimed one life due to its deteriorated nature. The contractor had returned to the road which the MP, who is also the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, had gone to inspect. The angry artisans upon hearing of the arrival of the MP thronged the highway and started hooting, pelting him with sachets of water, and subsequently chased him away. Akufo-Addo booed three times: In September 2022, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo suffered his first public booing incident while he was on stage at the Global Citizen Festival. The global entertainment event held at the Black Star Square in Accra saw thousands of patrons join a global audience to witness performances from local and international artistes. When it was the turn of the President to make his presentation, a section of the crowd began clapping and chanting 'away, away..." "The whole world is in Ghana today," the president was heard saying in a video sighted by GhanaWeb amid the 'away, away,' chants. The chants subsided and the president continued through with his remarks from the brightly lit stage. On October 17, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo got his next dose of booing when he got to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. This happened at the Central Business District when his convoy got to the town. As seen in videos shared via social media, some traders lined up along the stretch of the road booed as the president and his convoy passed through the Adum Market enroute to inspect the progress of work on the Kejetia/Central Market Project Phase II. The third time President Akufo-Addo suffered a booing incident was in Akyem Akroso on October 22, 2022. In a video sighted by GhanaWeb, some residents were heard booing the president and his entourage as they drove along a stretch riddled with potholes in the town located in the Eastern Region. “The president received boos due to the appalling condition of the area's roads,” according to a Twitter user going by the name @PrinceHenry_PHK. Dr. Bawumia booed at Hogbetsotso Za, November 2022: On Saturday, November 5, 2022, the Vice President of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, became the latest victim of booing by some Ghanaians. In a video shared online, some of the patrons gathered at the grounds where the 60th anniversary of the Hogbetsotso Za in Anloga, continuously booed at the Second Gentleman as he was delivering his address. AE/SARA
