Member of Parliament for Tamale North has expressed disappointment in President Akufo-Addo’s silence on the election deaths during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) Tuesday.
According to Alhassan Suhuyini, the President’s failure to touch on the deaths as part of incidents that transpired during the election period is unforgivable.
“Indeed it is unforgivable that the president failed to acknowledge the loss of lives including an 18-year-old who was voting for the first time,” he said.Akufo-Addo’s silence on election deaths during SONA is unforgivable – Alhassan Suhuyinihttps://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.432.0_en.html#goog_1059228124
“We all encouraged first-time voters to turn up in their numbers to vote, and for the president to have recounted events of the December 7th elections without even out of curtsey even if he didn’t mean it, sending words of commiseration to the family was simply unforgivable,” he stressed.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM: Express Tuesday, the MP said although he was not surprised at Akufo-Addo’s silence, acknowledging the incident would have given the bereaved families some sort of comfort.
“I wasn’t surprised, really, because I have had a course to complain about the posture of the president even on the night that he was fictitiously declared by the Electoral Commissioner as the winner of the December 7 polls.”https://cdn.jwplayer.com/players/LV1QInce-bOZsmy48.html
He recalled, Akufo-Addo during his address following the Electoral Commissioner’s declaration made references to the deaths as few.
“As at the time it was reported that five people had lost their lives and for the president on that night to have referred to those deaths as the time reported as few deaths.”
“I thought it was very insensitive on his part because even one life shouldn’t have even been referred to as few, as if to have said he expected more.”
Alhassan Suhuyini further stated that “to completely ignore that reality which is a bolt-on our history as a democracy and should be on our conscience is simply unforgivable.”
He noted that such an unfortunate incident is the first at this scale in the history of Ghanaian elections and the President should not ignore it even if he did not mean it.
“This is the first time we are having armed men and women in uniform gunning down people who must have been at collation or polling stations.”
The Tamale North MP is not the only one who has expressed disappointment in the president’s failure to acknowledge the deaths of the six who lost their lives during the December 7 elections.
One other guest on the panel, Director of Advocacy and Policy Engagement, CDD-Ghana, Dr Pumpuni Asante also expressed similar sentiments.
Meanwhile, Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah says the issue is being blown out of proportion.
