Politics of Sunday, 16 December 2012

Source: GNA

NDC supporters urged to celebrate victory

The Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo has called on the supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to celebrate the victory of the party wherever they find themselves in Ghana.

He said the party had won the December 7th polls and no action could reverse the results announced by the Electoral Commission (EC). Come January 7, 2013, he said, President John Dramani Mahama would be inaugurated as the President of the Republic of Ghana.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo was speaking at a victory raly organized by the Eastern Regional Secretariat of the NDC at the Koforidua Jackson’s Park on Saturday.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo explained that the attempted confusion that the supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) started in Accra was something the party planned and therefore urged the supporters of NDC to exercise restrain when provoked.

He described the December 7, 2012 elections in the country as the most transparent, free and fair elections that had been conducted in the country and appealed to the presidential candidate of the NPP to graciously concede defeat.

He regretted that the second largest political party in the country was demonstrating to the world that it was a violent party that should not be trusted and needed to be watched.

The Deputy Minister for Employment and Social Welfare, Mr Antwi Boasiako-Sekyere explained that the NPP had agents at all the polling stations in Ghana, the constituency coalition centres, the regional offices of the Electoral Commission (EC) and the strong room and all of them signed the various results sheets that they were satisfied with the results of the elections.

He said it was strange that when the EC was about to announce the final results the NPP complained that it had a problem.

Mr Boasiko-Sekyere questioned the source of the problem and described the NPP as behaving like a losing team, which started fighting on the football field at the end of a football match, strangely hoping that because of the confusion, the Football Association (FA) would order a replay of the match.

He said the NPP had lost the elections and had no case and if they believe they do, then they should present it at the court and call their people off the street.

He urged the supporters of NDC to start celebrating the victory of the party ahead of the January 7, 2013 swearing–in of President Mahama.

The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Victor Smith said the NPP leadership knew that what they were telling their supporters was false and the challenge they had was how to explain to the supporters that they had lost the election.

He called for hard work to transform Ghana into a prosperous nation for all its citizens.