Propaganda Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Richard Quashigah, says President Mills’ invitation extended to former President Kufuor for a meeting at the Castle, Osu, is affirmation of his (Mills’) statesmanship and father-for-all attitude and an action worthy of emulation by all political parties.
He was speaking in an interview with Shamima Muslim on Citi Eye Witness News.
President John Evans Atta Mills on Tuesday, February 22 held his first official meeting with his predecessor, John Agyekum Kufuor since assuming office in 2009. The close-door meeting, which lasted for nearly two hours, afforded the two statesmen the opportunity to “discuss matters of mutual, national and international interest.”
Commenting on ex-President Kufuor’s answer to the question on what he makes of Nana Akufo-Addo’s “all-die-be-die” comment, Mr. Quashigah said Mr. Kufuor’s response of “why don’t you ask him?” clearly shows he does not want to be associated with that infamous comment.
“Kufuor obviously did not want to reach into Nana Akufo-Addo’s “all die be die” comment and this shows clearly that he did not support that comment. If Kufuor thought that it was a harmless statement that Nana Addo made, he would have definitely said so; that he did not find anything wrong with it. But (it is obvious) he did not want to associate himself with it,” he said.
To him, Mr. Kufuor being the statesman that he is, did not want to soil his hard earned reputation with “ethnocentric blood thirsty statement like the all-die-be-die”.
However, in a swift rebuttal, a member of the New Patriotic Party’s Communication Team for Election 2012, John Boadu, countered that such comments by persons of Richard Quashigah’s caliber has the tendency of retrogressing the country.
To him, by engaging in propaganda and making political capital out of Mr. Kufuor’s acceptance of and subsequent meeting with President Mills is setting the tone for the NPP to think twice about honouring further invitations.
“People like Quashigah are the very people who are not helping the nation to grow. The impression he sought to create is the more reason why people in the NPP will next time say that if they are invited by the president they must not honour it and extend any hand of help to ensure that our nation moves forward,” he noted.