The National Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Jake Otanka Obetsebi Lamptey, has dismissed government allegations that he is trying to stir up ethnic conflict in the country.
The NPP stalwart has come under fire for suggesting on an Accra-based radio station - Oman FM, that Ghana is equally prone to post election violence if the lessons from other African countries were not learnt.
He is reported to have said that the violence that erupted in Ivory Coast was championed by the dominant Akan speaking people, who were fighting for their convictions, and what happened in the French-speaking country could happen in Ghana since the Akans in here, who are in the majority are likely to adopt the same strategies if they feel dissatisfied with the upcoming polls.
�The majority of the people in Ivory Coast are Akans. The large part of the ethnics in Ghana are Akans. The other tribes and things- you know the colonial [masters] did a line so this side of the line is Ghana; that side of the line is Cote d�Ivoire. And the line goes through a number of villages. So it means the people on this side are actually the same as the people on that side. If they can have violence in Cote d�Ivoire where does it say we can�t have violence in Ghana?� he explained, adding, �where does it say that the people of Ghana are such dummies that they are going to allow themselves to be cheated of their birthright whereas the people in Cote d�Ivoire say they won�t allow themselves to be cheated.�
�We have to assume that the same thing, the same reaction can come from the same people,� he noted.
But the NPP Chair insists his comments are not �ethnically divisive and explosive� as being portrayed by the NDC government.
Speaking on Citi FM�s Eyewitness News on Thursday, Mr Lamptey maintained his comments have been deliberately misinterpreted by members of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) for their own propaganda machinations. According to the former Tourism Minister under the Kufuor administration, his comments were not meant to incite NPP loyalists to take up arms and to cause mayhem, but was only sounding a note of caution to the Electoral Commission to ensure that the 2012 election is transparent.
He said the Electoral Commission�s refusal to call for an early Inter Party Advisory Committee meeting and the delays in the biometric register system are worrying. He said his comments were only meant to tell the EC that members of the NPP would not allow themselves to be taken for granted.
Government�s Reaction
Meanwhile, the government earlier on Thursday issued a statement calling on politicians to refrain from comments which could derail the peace of the country.
Read Below the Statement issued by the Information Ministry
Government has appealed to all political actors to guard against ethnically divisive and explosive statements which could spell doom for the country.
A statement signed by Mr. John Tia Akolgu, Minister for Information stressed that Ghanaians must not take the oasis of peace being enjoyed currently for granted neither should we assume that the national cohesion that Ghana has become noted for was achieved on a silver platter.
The Minister therefore asked that all of us as citizens and especially political leaders to desist from attempts to create a wedge between ethnic groups and inciting ethnocentric violence.
The Minister�s statement comes in the wake of comments made by the chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Jake Obetsebi Lamptey that since Akans are the dominant ethnic group in Ivory Coast which is the same situation in Ghana then what happened in Ivory Coast could happen in Ghana. Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey�s pronouncement follows a similar one by NPP Flag Bearer Nana Akufo Addo when the latter addressed party faithfuls in the Eastern Region.
Mr. Akologu indicated that it was the responsibility of Government to protect live and property and also ensure that peace is maintained at all times hence the Professor Mills led government will ensure the absolute protection of all Ghanaians whiles pledging government�s total resolve at stopping in their tracks those who intend to take this country down the path of Armageddon.
The Minister admonished that �we should as Ghanaians work towards the further deepening of our unity in diversity.�
The statement concluded that �whiles government is committed at presiding over free and fair elections it was imperative that all political actors refrain from conducting themselves as if their very existence depended on electoral victory whether the people will give them the mandate or not.�
Hon. John TIA AKOLOGU
MINISTER FOR INFORMATION
ACCRA
Source: Peacefmonline.com with additional files from Citifm
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