A comment by a former president of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Mr. Sam Okudzeto, that president would be planning his own funeral if he gave in to the pressure mounting on him to grant presidential pardon to the three Montie FM contemnors – Godwin Ako Gunn, Alistair Nelson and Salifu Maase – is a threat to Ghana’s democracy, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, General Secretary of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) has said.

Mr. Okudzeto told Class News that: “They [contemnors] threatened judges, which is a criminal offence, the [Attorney General] refused to prosecute the people and now should he [Mr Mahama] free them that is going to be his own funeral. …What lesson will he be telling the people of Ghana; that if people commit a criminal offence, because they are his party people, therefore, he should go and pardon them? Is that a proper way to administer the pardon? That is my view. If he wants to do it, he should go ahead and do it, but they forget we are all in Ghana; it is not just me.”

He stressed: “People have threatened to kill judges, which is a criminal offence, which is there in the criminal code and the Attorney General has not prosecuted them and he [President Mahama] wants to go and pardon? He should go ahead and pardon them because his party people want it, his party chairman said it, but as for me, I will not be a party to it.”

But Mr. Asiedu Nketiah in a statement said: “The NDC considers this statement from Mr. Okudzeto not only as a threat to President Mahama’s life but also, a danger to the very foundation of the country’s Constitution, the people, and democracy, especially when such baseless and dangerous pronouncement is coming from a supposed seasoned and experienced legal practitioner of no mean repute.”

“While condemning this unfortunate statement in no uncertain terms, the NDC also calls on the Police and the security agencies to invite Mr. Okudzeto to answer for such reckless and irresponsible statement since it is pregnant with unimaginable provocation to lawlessness and chaos.”