Former President John Mahama has warned that anybody who sheds Ghanaian blood on the day of elections this year with the aim of frustrating the National Democratic Congress (NDC) from freely and fairly participating in the polls, would be held accountable by his government should he win.

Speaking at the one-year anniversary of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence which saw some NDC supporters shot by masked national security operatives, the flag bearer of the biggest opposition party, said: “A leading member of the NPP declared publicly that Ayawaso West Wuogon was just a dress rehearsal and that the real events would be on 7 December 2020”.

“Since he made this statement, I haven’t heard the President, his Vice-President, the NPP leadership dissociate themselves from this statement that was made by the leading member.

“The people of Ghana, under the 1992 Constitution, have a constitutional mandate to defend the Constitution and our national sovereignty and we will call on the people of Ghana to prevent any subversion of the will of the people and resist any attempt to undermine the Constitution of Ghana on 7 December 2020”, he said.

Mr Mahama then warned: “… Let me serve notice that all those contemplating bloodshed and their promoters, if they shed any Ghanaian blood on 7 December 2020 and by the grace of God, I become the President of this country on 7 January 2021, they would be held individually to account for their actions”.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we will not keep quiet because our SHS children are going to be involved in that electoral process, there would be pregnant women and the aged present to vote and that is why we cannot remain silent. There would be Christians, there would be Muslims, there would be traditionalists and people of all religious space right there and that is why we must stop them now. Ladies and gentlemen, there would be media personnel either voting or performing their duties on the day that these promised attacks have been announced and that is why we must resist the rule of the oppressors. No Ghanaian can sit on the fence claiming neutrality.

“Every single individual across our nation must stand up and choose one of two sides – you either choose the side of Ghana or the side of impunity and violence”, he noted.