Mustapha Gbande, Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has strongly criticized the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) for what he describes as a deliberate attempt to incite public fear over an alleged third-term ambition by President John Mahama.
In a panel discussion on Joy News’ PM Express monitored by Kumasimail, Gbande accused the NPP of engaging in “rumour-mongering and paranoia” in response to legal and constitutional processes that they oppose but cannot halt.
He argued that the NPP’s claims about President Mahama seeking a third term are unfounded and serve only to distract from the real issue-the constitutionally sanctioned suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo.
He said “It is no longer just that Chief Justice Torkornoo was unfairly treated, but that they can see into the future that President Mahama would have to do a third term. And for that, they are scared”.
When pressed by the host Evans Mensah on whether President Mahama intends to pursue a third term, Gbande responded, “Why are we being invited into this distracting conversation? Is it in the place of the NPP to determine constitutional interpretation?”
He further described the NPP’s actions as a tactic to divert attention from the substantive constitutional process, warning that politicizing the matter could harm Ghana’s democratic institutions.
“They are inviting President Mahama to do a great injustice to the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana,” Gbande asserted.
Gbande cautioned that the NPP’s approach risks damaging the reputation and independence of the judiciary, particularly Chief Justice Torkornoo.
“The manner in which they are politicising this whole matter would injure the Chief Justice herself,” he warned, adding that aligning her with a political party is unfair and exposes her to undue political pressure.
He also criticized the NPP for lacking moral authority to question the process, noting that their recent demonstrations in Accra-despite alleging threats to their rights-actually demonstrated the robustness of Ghana’s constitutional freedoms.
He noted “To demonstrate early morning, bringing people from Winneba and Kumasi to come and protest in Accra, that is a right given to them by the same Constitution they claim is under threat”.
The Deputy General Secretary urged the NPP to “hasten slowly” and refrain from projecting imaginary scenarios as facts.
He warned that continued politicization could have far-reaching consequences, stating,
“Tomorrow, if people come out to say things that even border on criminality as far as the Chief Justice is concerned, the NPP will be put to shame.”
Source : www.kumasimail.com /Kwadwo Owusu
