The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has formally responded to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's comment that he cannot hand over power to someone he defeated twice, reference to former president John Dramani Mahama.

Akufo-Addo made comments to that effect twice in the last few weeks. First during an engagement in the northern part of the country and later in Doboro in the Greater Accra Region.

NDC General Secretary, Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, in a statement issued on May 16, 2024, reminded Akufo-Addo that he was the beneficiary of a peaceful handing over by Mahama after he had also lost two elections.

"In an unprecedented declaration, we have a sitting President who should champion our democratic ethos, yet he proclaims that he will not relinquish power to someone he once defeated. Indeed, power does corrupt.

"President Akufo-Addo, basking in the fleeting glory of the power he literally begged Ghanaians for, seems to have forgotten that he, too, was defeated in the 2008 and 2012 elections, yet power was graciously transferred to him in 2017,@ Kwetey said during a press briefing.

“'Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.' This revelation speaks volumes about his intentions and the potential peril to our nation’s stability. What the NPP, unfortunately fails to understand is that the NDC stands prepared and vigilant, ready to ensure free and transparent elections, even at the risk of our own lives," he stressed.

The press conference was originally to discuss issues relative to the Electoral Commission and the conduct of the ongoing Limited Voters Registration Exercise, which has been dogged by a number of challenges.

Akufo-Addo lost his first attempt at the presidency in 2008, winning the first round and losing the second round to late president John Evans Atta Mills.

In 2012, he lost again to Mahama, who completed Mills' tenure before winning his substantive first term. Mahama lost his re-election bid to Akufo-Addo and his second reelection attempt in 2020.

Mahama is the NDC's flagbearer for the 2024 polls and will have a main opponent in Akufo-Addo's Vice President, Mahamudu Bawumia.

SARA