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Majority Leader of Parliament, Hon. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu says the ‘do or die’ comment of former President John Dramani Mahama should be condemned with all certainty without mincing words.

According to the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, it does not speak well of a leader who has served the nation before to make such a despicable comment even though everyone is fallible to make mistakes in life.

Speaking on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the Suame lawmaker noted that there cannot be any rationalization and justification for what President John Mahama said during his ‘Thank You’ tour as the context in which he said the ‘do or die’ is misleading the NDC followers to think that the party was robbed in the 2020 general elections.

He reiterated that President John Mahama was wrong to say that the NDC accepted defeat in the 2020 general election because of peace; thus, to him, the opposition NDC could not provide any evidence in the Supreme Court when the Court asked the NDC to provide evidence of wrongdoing in the Presidential results.  

“Today, you go on a ‘Thank You’ tour to say that the NDC rather won the 2020 election and the EC subverted the will of the people, meanwhile, you could not provide evidence in the court and you turn around to say that in the next 2024 election, it will be a 'do or die' affair, we must be bold to tell him that he is wrong and a leader must not speak like that," he pooh-poohed Mahama.

“If you say that this is a ‘do or die’ issue, it means that if you don’t win, then you must kill yourself for losing the election. This is what it means. There can’t be any rationalization and justification for what he said because he said it in a context and the context was the NDC was robbed in the 2020 election and so the 2024 election will be a do or die," he noted.

He maintained that former President John Dramani Mahama erred with his submission that the NDC won the election, adding that the former President is rather urging his followers to position themselves for only a win-win situation at the polling stations.

“What he said is not true but rather urging his followers that whether we like it or not, the NDC must win at the polling stations. A leader must not speak like that. As you said, President Akufo-Addo said something similar and Ghanaians were not happy about it and he was criticised by the same NDC members who are now supporting what former President Mahama said,” he noted.

“If what he has said is wrong, we should come out boldly to condemn it so that he does not repeat it . . .  you bring unnecessary tension in the country. He must know that election is not about life or death,” he chided.

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