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Former President Mahama and Mr. Julius Debrah have incurred the wrath of the Ashanti regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, following a statement they released to refute a claim by the Asantehene.

Mr. Antwi-Boasiako who isn't happy about the tone of the statement released in the name of former President Mahama, noted that he won't allow "lazy and corrupt politicians" to throw dirt at a respected and important personality like Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

An angry Wontumi stated that "due to bad parenting, Mahama and Julius Debrah speak to every authority like vagabonds".

"How can you disrespect Otumfuo in a statement when you know very well that what he said at the UN summit was true? I am an integral member of the NPP and I know everything that happened in Ashanti region when we won the 2016 elections."

"Mahama is a bad person, he lacks respect. He doesn't know how to talk to people in higher places. As for Julius, he became a Chief of Staff for only six months and became super corrupt for that short period so he is like a twin of Mahama when it comes to disrespect," he said.

He continued that if the two fail to render an apology to the Ashanti King, he would ensure they are banned from attending any event the Kingdom organises.

The Asantehene had claimed in an address abroad that his palace had to convince the former President to hand over power after the polls that saw him losing with over one million votes to now President Akufo-Addo. 

“At the conclusion of the last presidential and parliamentary elections, the country [Ghana] stood on the edge of disaster. The UN representatives and the diplomatic community were aghast, alarmed that Ghana was going to slip down the slope of electoral violence. 

“Fortunately, the moral authority of the palace was at hand. We were able to intervene to persuade the losing candidate to accept his fate and fly both candidates for a quiet encounter to pave the way for a handover,” said the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II claimed.

But in a statement attributed to Mr. Julius Debrah, the former President Mahama said he handed over power out of his commitment to the rule of law and democracy. 

“I state without equivocation that the decision to concede and congratulate Nana Akufo-Addo even before the official results were declared was taken by President Mahama himself without any persuasion from any quarter. 

On the day President Mahama willingly conceded defeat, he met with then-Vice President Kwesi Bekoe Amissah- Arthur, NDC Chairman Kofi Portuphy, General Secretary of the NDC Johnson Asiedu Nketia, together with some high ranking members of the party and informed them of his decision to call and congratulate Nana Akufo-Addo. 

“Following the meeting with the party, he called a number of personalities including President Jerry John Rawlings, President John Agyekum Kufuor, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, National Chief Imam Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu, Rev. Ernest Agyei of the Ringway Assemblies of God Church and Archbishop Duncan Williams. 

“As Otumfuo himself has already stated publicly, under his auspices, there were three meetings held in Kumasi between President Mahama and then Candidate/President-Elect Nana Akufo-Addo during the period,” the statement said. It added: 

“The first was prior to the December 07 election in which the two candidates promised to play fair and respect the will of the people. Indeed, President Mahama in a conversation with Nana Akufo-Addo said he hoped Nana was not going to tie down the nation in a court case again after the 2016 elections.

“The other two meetings took place after the official declaration of the results of the elections, and to re-emphasise, after President Mahama had publicly conceded and congratulated Nana Akufo-Addo.