In the aftermath of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence, former President Mahama has responded to the ruling government's criticism of him meeting with foreign diplomats.
According to Mr Mahama, no amount of government propaganda can erase the shame created by the violence recorded during the by-election.
Former President John Mahama on February 13 hosted diplomats and showed them videos and photos of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence.
In responding to that,the Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said John Mahama peddled falsehood at the meeting with the diplomats.
According to him,John Mahama used falsehood to undermine the authority of the state in the eyes of the international community therefore tarnishing the image of the country.
Oppong Nkrumah said in the evidence provided by the Police and Electoral Commission and seen live on TV by the public, there was no suggestion of violence at any polling station.
The Information Minister added that the government will this week serve a notice to the members of the diplomatic community that two of the three videos and the narratives that the former President gave to them on the said videos are false and designed at tarnishing Ghana’s hard worn reputation in the eyes of the international community.
Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah also said the actions of Mr Mahama is prejudicial to the commission of Inquiry.
John Mahama on his Facebook page on Monday, February 18 2019, said:
“No amount of government-sponsored propaganda and distraction will take away the stigma of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election, as darkest day in the history of Ghana’s 4th Republican democracy.â€
“No amount of propaganda from government can erase the shame this country was subjected to on that ‘bloody Thursday’,†he added.
Below is the full statement of Mahama
No amount of government sponsored propaganda and distraction will take away the stigma of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election, as darkest day in the history of Ghana's 4th Republican democracy.
The substance of the matter is the violence meted out to innocent Ghanaians by hoodlums of the ruling government, paraded initially as state security personnel.
Thanks to videos filmed by television stations and other individuals, the true identity of these hoodlums, identified as members of the Invincible and Delta Forces of the NPP have been revealed.
The victims, injured on the day, did not take guns and shoot themselves. They were injured by powerful assault rifles given to partisan hoodlums for the purpose of intimidating Ghanaians who were peacefully exercising their franchise in a by-election.
The meeting held by my office in conjunction with the NDC Party and the Minority in Parliament was to correct the false impression given to the diplomatic corps that NDC was the cause of the violence in Ayawaso West Wuogon.
No amount of propaganda from government can erase the shame this country was subjected to on that ‘bloody Thursday’.
In any case, this is not the first, and will not be the last time in our history that an opposition group is meeting with the diplomatic corps to explain or clarify its version or outlook on policy or events in our country.
Government must own up to its responsibilities and ensure the prosecution of the criminal elements who it deployed in Ayawaso West Wuogon. It is those actions that paint the country black internationally, not those who expose the dastardly acts sanctioned by government and its appointees.
In the public interest, let me share with you, one of the three main videos I showed at the Wednesday meeting with diplomats on the violence in Ayawaso West Wuogon. This, like the others, is a compilation available and shared widely by various media houses over the period.
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