President Nana Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Tuesday appeared to taunt the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs when he reminded them that their flag bearer John Dramani Mahama election petition defeat was unanimous.
He appeared to say during the delivery of the State of the Nation Address that even though he also lost in 2013 when he mounted a challenge against the declaration of Mr. Mahama as President after the 2012 election, he lost it narrowly by a 5-4 majority as opposed to Mr. Mahama’s unanimous (7-0) loss.
Matters came to a head when the NDC MPs started taunting him for commenting on the Supreme Court decision on March 4, 2021 which validated his victory of December 9, 2020 after the December 7, 2020 General Election.
“The Supreme Court, Mr. Speaker for example, determined the challenge of the validity of the 2020 Presidential Election and affirmed its validity, a unanimous decision!” he said.
The NDC MPs started jeering him and the President fired back saying “not 5-4! Not 5-4! It was unanimous!” in reference to the 2013 and 2021 petitions.
The President said that his re-election for a second term in office has been unanimously upheld by the Supreme Court, paving the way for him to discharge his mandate as President of the Republic of Ghana.
“Mr. Speaker, the court has spoken. It is time for all of us to move on in a united manner to confront the problem of the post-COVID-19 in Ghana,” he said.
He said the “message is the first of my 2nd term, the validity of which was unanimously upheld last week in a well-reasoned and excellent ruling by a seven-member panel of the Supreme Court, presided over by the Chief Justice, on March 4, 2021.”
“Mr. Speaker, in 2017, I was here for the first time as President of the Republic, having won the election of 2016, and having inherited a faltering economy and an expectant people,” he stated and added that between that time and 2020, he sought to deliver on the mandate reposed on him and his party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), and “gain, once again, the confidence of the Ghanaian people.”
“In spite of the considerable challenges we confronted, and the setbacks we encountered, we were confident our record in office would put us in good stead before the electorate, and earn us a second term in office, which it did,” he noted.
“It means that the reason for which the Ghanaian people went to the polls on December 7, i.e to seek an improvement in their living standards and the rapid transformation of the economy, must continue in earnest. It means that the clarion call of ‘Four More for Nana and the NPP to do more for you’ must be realised, and I intend to do so,” he indicated.
President Akufo-Addo indicated that the commencement of the process had been facilitated by Parliament and thanked Members of Parliament (MPs) for enabling government to be duly constituted.
“The expeditious and thorough manner in which my Ministers were scrutinised by the Appointments Committee, and the approval by the full House of each of the twenty-nine (29) substantive Ministers, for me, was an indication of the collective determination of both sides of the House, with mutual regard for each other, to work together for the good of the country.”
“This is what the Ghanaian people demand from us by insisting on virtual parity in the House between the two major parties of our country. The realisation of the Ghana Project, and not the attainment of narrow partisan interests, must be the guiding principle of the business to be conducted in the House,” he said.
He gave firm commitment to the Speaker and assured the legislature of the cooperation of the executive arm in this endeavour, intimating that “as I indicated in my acceptance speech on the night of December 9, 2020, now is the time for each and every one of us, irrespective of our political affiliations, to unite, join hands, stand shoulder-to-shoulder, and work hard to place Ghana where she deserves to be.”
President Akufo-Addo stated that in the face of the COVID-19 global pandemic that has ravaged lives and livelihoods in all parts of the world, the government could not afford to pursue interests that will leave the nation and its citizens poorer.
“COVID-19 has impacted heavily on economic activities, created uncertainty, weakened global growth conditions, whilst putting undue strain on already weak and fragile health systems, particularly in developing countries,” he pointed out, and continued that between 2017 and the first quarter of 2020, the government had made considerable gains in the management of the national economy.
According to him, it witnessed annual average GDP growth of seven per cent, single digit inflation, reduced fiscal deficits with three consecutive years of primary surpluses, a relatively stable exchange rate, a significant improvement in the current account with three consecutive years of trade surpluses, strong foreign exchange reserve buffers, markedly reduced lending rates, and appreciable job creation.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House
