Mahama tribal comments desperation borne out of frustration - Lecturer

A political science lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr. Charles Marfo has slammed President John Dramani Mahama over his ‘Dr Mahamudu Bawumia will be dumped by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) after using him for the party's dirty job.’

President John Dramani Mahama at a rally in Lawra Friday as part of his campaign tour of the Upper West Region, said he pity Dr. Bawumia because he will never be given the opportunity to be president in the NPP.

Using the late Aliu Mahama as an example he said, “Alhaji Aliu Mahama was Vice President under the NPP government. He served faithfully under President Kufuor and, so, when eight years was up and President Kufuor was leaving, the natural order of succession is that he should have been given the opportunity to lead that party but, 17 people contested him and defeated him."

"That is why I say NDC is a party of opportunity because if NDC wasn’t, who am I, a boy from Bole born in Damango, who am I to stand here and call myself President of the Republic of Ghana?”

"Let anything happen today and let our brother Bawumia say he is standing for President in NPP. They will never give it to him, I can assure you," President Mahama said. But responding to the comments, Dr. Marfo described it ''as childish and an act of desperation borne out of frustration''.

According to him, such utterances by politicians affirm that they lack ideas and message to convince voters to vote for them.

The comments by President Mahama make no sense, inconsistent and unwarranted, he noted.

President Mahama he noted belittled himself by making such an unfortunate comment and questioned whether the NDC chooses incompetence over diligence when selecting its flagbearers.

Dr. Charles Marfo asserted that politicians are aware tribal politics is bad and divisive yet they reluctantly and intentionally engage in it to win votes and has therefore called for an end to it.

He did not chide the president alone but descended also on the presidential candidate of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo and presidential candidate of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom for engaging in tribal politics instead concentrating on the core message.

According to him, the days where tribalism played a role in politics are over, hence the need for political parties to concentarte on selling their message instead of engaging in tribal politics.