Former President John Dramani Mahama has stated that he will not be attending today’s (March 6) celebration in Ho to mark the occasion of Ghana’s independence day.
The phrase “Our Unity, Our Strength, Our Mission” will serve as the overarching theme for the gathering.
Mahama accused the organizers of the event of turning the occasion into a political party jamboree in which supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) would be bussed in to cheer on their leaders.
Mr. Mahama noted that the celebration of Independence Day is a national somber day and that it should not be hijacked by a political party. He argued that this should be the case.
Speaking on Sunday, March 5, in Accra at the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Professional Forum Dinner and Awards Night, Mr. Mahama, who is running for the position of flagbearer of the NDC ahead of the general elections in 2024, said, “I just came from the Volta Region, and just when I was leaving they were preparing to celebrate Independence Day.
I no longer celebrate Independence Day because it has evolved into a wild party extravaganza. I traveled to Tamale, and when I got there, they told GBC to take the camera off of me, and then they bused in their fans until the stadium was completely full.
“When I entered the stadium, everyone had left, so I went and found a seat. They showed me to a corner somewhere, and I sat there while they took over the dais. [The supporters] would yell whenever any of them would come.
I have already stated that I do not wish to participate in this party jamboree. Independence Day is a serious national holiday, and the festivities take place in Independence Square.
Anybody and everyone is welcome to attend. I don’t want to be a part of the party jamboree today since they are bringing in their fans by party bus, they are waving party flags, and they are wearing party T-shirts.
“Nkrumah won us independence; I am a Nkrumahist; I will attend an Independence Day anniversary any day of the week if it is not taken over by one party; it is a national day for all of us; but, I will not be there because I do not want to be a part of an NPP Jamboree.”
You just wait and see what will take place; they will bus their people there, and they will occupy the entire place.
In light of the celebration that took place in Ho, the Volta Region branch of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) is requesting that the government pay back money that is owed to the area in the amount of GH126 million.
According to the National Democratic Congress (NDC), this sum represents the sum total of the promise made by the government led by Akufo-Addo of GH1 million per constituency per year.
The NDC claims that this promise has been in default for the previous seven years.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Volta Region stated that the joy and enthusiasm that typically characterize the celebration of the country’s independence anniversary are waning because of “unprecedented bad governance, unimaginable levels of corruption, and the incredible high cost of living.” This was stated by the NDC.
“We believe that in order for this theme to resonate well with all Ghanaians, it would be appropriate for President Nana Addo to use the Independence Day celebration to apologize to the good people of the Volta Region for the kind of humiliations he subjected the good people of the Region to during the 2020 voter registration,” the NDC said in a statement that was issued by the Regional Secretary, James Gunu.
“We believe that in order for this theme to resonate well with all Ghanaians, it would be appropriate for President Nana
“It is evident that the unparalleled levels of bad governance, unthinkable levels of corruption, and the very high cost of living are undermining the joy and passion that would normally go along with our celebrations of our nation’s independence day.”
“The administration of the country’s economy is not conducted in a patriotic or nationalistic manner at any point.”