Oforikrom MCE Mad At NDC Constituency Communication Officer
By Kofi Owusu
Jerry James Sukah, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Constituency Communications Officer for Oforikrom in Kumasi, has been verbally attacked by Mr. Abraham Kwame Antwi, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for the area, for leading a series of demonstrations to demand the fixing of broken bridges and bad roads.
Shot screen of David Akutteh (LUV Fm morning show Host) in an interview with Hon.Abraham Kwame Antwi, Oforikrom MCE
Mr. Antwi criticised the NDC communications officer, popularly known as Papa Jay, during his interview with Kumasi-based Luv 99.5 FM, a subsidiary of Multimedia Group of Companies.
The questions and answers during the interview have been reproduced below:
The host(David Akutteh) Residents of the area, to some extent, were angered by the state of the roads because they have talked about it for so long. So late last year, they demonstrated if what I read is anything to go by. They came to your house.
Papa Jay
They went to the house of the MP. That’s what I’m asking. They don’t mobilise themselves to demonstrate and come to your house to tell you to fix the roads. Did they go to the MP as well?
The MCE: …sometimes I have a problem when people want to paint themselves as David when they are not.
Even if one person has a problem and he picks a placard and demonstrates, it is the job of government to respect his view because he is also a resident and, for that matter, he has to be heard … They didn’t come to my place but rather went and stood in front of the MP’s house and you say residents of the area.
The NDC constituency communications officer for Oforikrom got his people to do that.
The host: Are they not residents of the area?
The MCE: They are residents.
The host: What is wrong if they demonstrate?
The MCE: No, I am saying that Jerry should just say ‘I am doing this with my people.’ I don’t have a problem because even if I come to the office and they have written to me that these roads are not good, we will give attention to their demand. But, sometimes, he would go out there and do his thing and portray it as if “nkrɔfoɔ bi nanso wo ara na woyɛ”.
The host: Well, Jerry is not here to defend himself on this matter. But the bottom line is this: If he is a resident of the area and he comes to raise concerns about the state of the roads, why do we need to put political colour to it?
The MCE: Even if it is one person, I will do it … I don’t have a problem with that …
The host: Well, for me, once the person is a resident of the area and wants to raise concerns about the state of the roads, I don’t see anything wrong with that …
