– We will not sacrifice power for peace; “Look at my muscles, these muscles are natural”
Salam Mustapha, the National Youth Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), was over the weekend heard beating war drums ahead of the upcoming general election in December.
He boldly declared the ruling party’s stance on power and peace, suggesting the NPP, will prefer power over peace.
Speaking at a mini rally in Takoradi on Saturday, August 17, ahead of his party’s manifesto launch yesterday Sunday, August 18, Mustapha, emphasised that while the NPP values peace, they are not willing to relinquish power merely for the sake of maintaining peace.
Salam Mustapha, asserted that his party also boasts strong individuals capable of countering the NDC, daring the opposition to take any actions they deem necessary before, during or after the December polls.
“I’m also telling them that the NPP will not sacrifice power on the altar of peace, we will not do it. We will not submit, we will not be cowed, prevented, or pushed.
“Look at my muscles, these muscles are natural, my muscles are full of bones. If the NDC believe they are stronger than us, they should dare in this election and they will see that we have the men.
“We’re for peace, we like peace, we’re for the progress of the country. But we will not be pushed out by any form of tactics. Ghanaians will make their choice and vote for the NPP.”
Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, popularly known as “Napo,” brought energy to the stage as he danced and performed to King Paluta’s hit song Aseda.
The NPP running mate for the upcoming elections was seen enthusiastically singing and dancing, much to the delight of the crowd.
Supporters cheered him on as he showcased his moves, adding a lively twist to the event.
Dressed in a brown outfit and sporting a scarf in the party’s colors around his neck, Napo’s performance became a highlight of the rally, setting the tone for the NPP’s manifesto launch yesterday, Sunday, August 18.
The NPP Parliamentary Candidate for Essikado-Ketan Constituency, Charles Onuawonto Bissue, said the party cannot afford the recurrence of the 2008 electoral defeat in the pending elections.
According to him, the NPP’s complicency accounted for that lose, given that the margins were relatively lower.
Addressing the mini rally, Bissue indicated that the NPP lost by some twenty-three thousand votes to the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
He explained that the margin represented, on average, a loss of a single vote at each of the polling stations across the country.
Impressed by the mammoth crowd at the rally, Charles Bissue charged members and sympathisers of the party to step out in their numbers to campaign and win votes for the party at all levels in the coming elections.
“Let’s guard against the experiences of the 2008 elections. We lost just about twenty-three thousand votes. At the time, we had twenty-three thousand polling stations, so we lost on average, a vote per polling station. We had such a wonderful crowd as this, during our campaign yet we lost to the NDC.
“Let’s go out in our numbers to campaign for victory right after the manifesto is launched,” he emphasized.
The Vice Presidential Candidate of the NPP, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, corroborated Bissue’s assertion, stressing that the NPP had the chance to remain in power after the expiration of the tenure of former President John Agyekum Kufuor.
He continued that the records of accomplishments of the John Agyekum Kufuor’s administration won the admiration of many Ghanaians, yet the NDC, through their “deception” got the electorates to vote against the NPP in 2008.
“For the accomplishments of President Kufuor, Ghanaians shouldn’t have voted against the NPP. We forgot, and suffered the consequences at the hands of the NDC,” he said.
He added that the NDC sponsored a total of forty-seven advertisements against the Free SHS policy that was proposed by then presidential candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
“In 2016, a political party sponsored 47 advertisements against the Free SHS policy. They said that the Free SHS was a bad policy. That, if they had over two billion Ghana Cedis, they wouldn’t invest in the Free SHS.
“… today, they want to take credit as the originators of the Free SHS policy,” he added.
