President Jerry John Rawlings has expressed shock at publications in the media alleging that an email had been sent from one of his email addresses containing a list of 85 persons who will be killed should the NDC come to power.

A statement issued by his office and signed by Mr. Kofi Adams said when news first broke of the existence of such an email the former President declined to comment on the matter because he knew who were behind such ‘arrant nonsense’ and did not wish to be drawn into their ‘dirty lies’.

“However it has become clear the sponsors of this calculated lie have a grand plan to vilify Rawlings by creating an atmosphere of fear so they can use it for their selfish political ends,” President Rawlings noted.

The former President said no such email had been issued from him and no such email will ever come from him or any officer within his household or office.

“It will not happen because Jerry John Rawlings is busy campaigning for change in Ghana so every Ghanaian can enjoy the national cake. It is only devious and infantile minds in the NPP who will come up with such treacherous ploys to distract the determination of Ghanaians to vote for change.

“Is it not very suspicious that such ugly stories are coming up only days after the last election and are being given heavy attention by a section of the media because of the heavy doses of funds being thrown around to them by the NPP?

“How can anyone in their right minds expect me to attempt to eliminate people when I am the very person who helped institutionalize our current political dispensation?” ex-President Rawlings asked.

The former President cautioned all Ghanaians to be very wary of the danger the NPP pose to the safety of this country because of the desperate actions they have taken in the past few days to perpetuate their stay in power.

“No one in my office or within the National Democratic Congress has instituted a plan to destabilize the December 28 elections. Our focus is on convincing the electorate to stay resolved to vote for change. Even before the official announcement of the December 7 results I issued a statement thanking Ghanaians for comporting themselves during the elections.

“My statement was issued long before the NPP thought of coming up with a statement because they were living in cloud cuckoo land assuming that they had won enough votes to give them a first round victory.”

Former President Rawlings said: “We are aware of their newly laid out plans which include: Demonizing Jerry John Rawlings and the NDC Begging voters in the Ashanti Region and coastal areas Releasing taxi drivers who had been imprisoned or remanded for road traffic offences Physically attacking members of my entourage and blaming the ensuing confusion on my officials Stuffing ballot boxes in areas where the NPP believes it has a huge support base Creating an atmosphere of fear in areas where there is a perceived support for the NDC so voters will stay at home Paying huge sums of money to NDC polling agents to support their rigging process And creating a state of emergency should things begin to go awry during the announcement of the December 28 election results.

“During the December 7 Election every effort was made to bully the Electoral Commission to release the results to favour the NPP. Indeed a plan was hatched to announce the result at 11pm on Tuesday December 9 and to ensure that no one questioned the credibility of the result and the timing, the Police was instructed to announce that major roads will be blocked and there will be a heavy presence of security agencies across the country.”

President Rawlings said the statement by the police was so ill-conceived because it was issued at a time when the entire country was taking a break from the rigours of the voting process and when there was no hint whatsoever of violence. It was the ruling NPP trying to bully its way back into power.

“I wish to caution all Ghanaians, particularly those whose names have unfortunately surfaced in this phantom hit list of mine to remain vigilant because every attempt will be made to harm some of them in a bid to convince the electorate that indeed I have plans to eliminate some people.

“Ghanaians are yearning for change - a change that will bring a more credible alternative in the person of John Evans Atta-Mills and the NDC to power. Efforts at diverting the attention of the electorate through infantile statements that I will be controlling a Mills presidency are but a figment of the myopic imaginations of the NPP propaganda machinery who have gone bankrupt and have decided that scaremongering and outright lies are the best route to electoral victories.

“Certainly Jerry John Rawlings and the NDC will not take such tricks lying down and we caution all Ghanaians to be equally watchful.”