A founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has incurred the fury of some Christians in the Ashanti Regional Capital, Kumasi, for saying God is a very wicked man to have given Ghanaians Professor John Evans Atta Mills, as their president.

Mr. George Ayisi Boateng is said to have made the sacrilegious statement on the Kumasi-based Kessben FM, last Saturday evening on a programme called “Democracy” hosted by one Lawyer Ohene Gyan.

This comes months after NPP held an inter-denominational prayer session at the Essipong Sports Stadium in Sekondi, in the Western Region, to commit the party’s 2012 campaign, the nation and the December polls into the hands of God.

The Herald’s office in Accra was yesterday inundated with telephone calls from Kumasi, on the statement saying it demonstrates how desperate the NPP has gotten to in their quest for political power to an extent that they have resorted to even attacking God.

Mr. Ayisi Boateng is said to have made the comment in response to a caller who asked the NPP to be thankful to God for giving the country a God-fearing man like John Mills as president instead of their daily vitriolic attack on his person.

An official of Kessben FM, Omanhene Adu Boakye has confirmed the statement which, generating debate in Kumasi and its environs, was indeed made by Mr. Ayisi Boateng, last Saturday night, but suggested Mr. Ayisi Boateng’ s comments must have been taken out of context.

A certain Brogya Gyenfi, a youth activist of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and said to have been on the programme with Mr. Ayisi Boateng, tried to prevail upon him to withdraw his statement, but the NPP stalwart is said to have refused.

The NPP founding member is said to have explained that the God he knows is loving, caring and tender, however, if the same God has turned about and given Ghana Prof. Mills, He (God) could only be punishing Ghanaians for rejecting the NPP at the last election despite the Kufuor administration’s good policies.

Mr. Boateng is said to have mentioned the suffering of Ghanaians under the Mills presidency, the recent communal clashes in the country, and the deafening silence of President Mills, as his reason for describing God as a wicked man.

Ayisi Boateng said he is a Christian and a presbyter and that if God wasn’t a wicked person, he wouldn’t have given Ghanaians the kind of president we have, under whose reign a lot of calamities have befallen this country.

He mentioned the beheading of a certain chief in the Central Region, the Capitation Grant, under the Health Insurance Programme, which has resulted in a lot of deaths in Kumasi.

He repeated these claims on Capital Radio and refused to withdraw and apologize when the NDC Regional Secretary asked him to do so.

In a telephone interview with The Herald yesterday, the NDC activist said that as a Christian he was offended by Mr. Ayisi Boateng’s, unkind words for his maker, but was not shocked as the NPP has a penchant for attacking God when it comes to an election.

He recalled how the Member of Parliament for Assin North, Kennedy Agyapong virtually attacked God during the 2008 presidential run-off between President Mills and Nana Akufo-Addo by saying that he (Mr. Agyapong) will not believe in God again should He allow John Mills to become president.

In the case of Mr. Ayisi Boateng, Mr. Gyenfi said he quoted a passage in Romans in the Bible for him to remind him of God’s superior powers over any other power on earth, and asked him to withdraw his statement and apologize to of his listeners, but sadly, the NPP man was adamant.

Before press time, The Herald called Mr. Ayisi Boateng on his Vodafone line, but he said he was driving on a highway hence could not talk. When it was suggested to him that he could park his car to give a brief response, he insisted he could not do so as it was unsafe for him.

The Ashanti Regional Secretary of NDC, Mr. Joseph Yemin, also confirmed that the incident took place, however, the party was working on getting the audio from Kessben FM, and hoped the station would release it.

The NPP in January, this year, held an inter-denominational prayer session at the Essipong Sports Stadium in Sekondi in the Western Region to commit the party’s 2012 campaign, the nation and the December polls into the hands of God.

It was under the theme: ‘Setting Forth With The Hand Of God”, and attended by flagbearer of the party, Nana Addo Akufo-Addo, National Chairman, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey and his team of the National Executive members; the Campaign Manager, Mr. Boakye Agyarko, as well as the party’s parliamentary candidates across the country.

The NPP explained at the time that it was the absolute conviction of the party that before they engaged in any serious campaigning, they needed to commit the presidential candidate, all the 230 parliamentary candidates, the campaign, the party and, indeed, the entire nation into the care and mercy of God for His Will to be done.