The General Secretary of the All People’s Congress (APC), Razak Opoku, has taken a swipe at the flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, describing him as “joke” in the presidential race.

In a response to claims that Mr Ayariga was a joke who should not be taken seriously in the politics of the country, Mr Opoku, speaking on Inside Politics on Class 91.3FM on Monday October 24, said the NPP and its flag bearer were rather the jokers and cited many examples to buttress his point.

“If the NPP describes Dr Hassan Ayariga as not being serious, as being a joker, as somebody who is not fit to be a president, that is their own opinion, but let’s assess Dr Hassan Ayariga with the NPP leadership and see who is serious, who is fit to be president, and who is a joker,” he told show host Moro Awudu.

“You have a presidential candidate in the person of Nana Akufo-Addo making an utterance of ‘We Akans’ and saying that when he becomes president, he is going to rule only Akans to the detriment of non Akans. This is a pure joke from somebody who wants to assume the highest office of the land. If you have a flag bearer who is echoing all-die-be-die and whereby his beloved son said we should kill Gas and Ewes, he is declaring war, and the same person was bastardising the chairperson of the Electoral Commission, whereby up to now he has not apologised and the same leader has never cautioned this person and the same Nana Akufo- Addo has never apologised for his all-die-be-die mantra. This is a clear joker of a leader.”

Mr Opoku further said: “You have a situation whereby at the age of 72 you’re still living in your father’s house, this is a joke of the century. At the age of 72, you are still enjoying the drinks of kids, this is the joke of the century. You are the leader of a party, you are going into a serious election [and] you say you cannot work with your National Chairman, your General Secretary, your Second Vice Chairman. Your handlers have shown gross disrespect to President Kufuor, whereby you are using President Kufuor’s achievements to say that Ghanaians should vote for you but your beloved Kennedy Agyapong said Kwadwo Mpiani and President Kufuor allegedly killed Chairman Adams and up to now you have never condemned it – he’s just the joker of the century. Such a leader is Nana Akufo-Addo. So clearly speaking, all these things that I have mentioned, you will not see it in Dr Hassan Ayariga. So if the NPP are saying they are the next party in government and you sit down for one person, a person you claim is a joker, he is not serious, to launch his manifesto and the same manifesto that he highlighted you have your leading members shamefully come to Trade Fair Centre and highlight the same manifesto word for word, that is a joke of a political party.”