The Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has cautioned the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) against comparing the achievements of the Akufo-Addo-led government with those of Ghana’s first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.

During his unveiling in Kumasi on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, popularly known as NAPO, asserted that no president, including Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, has developed Ghana like President Akufo-Addo has since 2017.

“Since independence from 1957 till today, we have not had any president that has helped Ghana like Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. I say from 1957 till today, you can bring your Kwame Nkrumah… no president has protected Ghana and moved the country forward like Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo,” NAPO declared to thunderous applause.

However, addressing a rally on Tuesday evening in Ashaiman, former President Mahama condemned the attempt to compare the two governments, describing it as misguided and insulting to Ghanaians given the unparalleled achievements of the Nkrumah government.

“All the NPP is doing now is dabbling in propaganda. They claim they have honored all their promises. They say they are the best government since independence, not even Kwame Nkrumah’s government can be compared to them. Such a useless government, how can you compare yourself with Nkrumah’s government? Nkrumah was a visionary. Till date, let’s shut down the Akosombo Dam and see if we’ll have power supply in this country. Meanwhile, this dam was commissioned in 1965, and till now, it is the bulwark of our power supply in this country. Today, let us close the Tema Motorway and see if people can travel around in Ghana. Tema Harbour was built by Nkrumah. If we didn’t have the harbour, could we have been able to import things into Ghana? Kotoka Airport was built by Nkrumah.”

Mr. Mahama urged the NPP not to stretch the comparison as far back as Nkrumah’s government, challenging them to compare their record with that of his own administration.

“You dare not compare yourself to Nkrumah, don’t try! If the NPP wants to do a comparison, they should not do that with Nkrumah. Mahama is just here, I am around. Don’t do your comparison with Rawlings, Kufuor, or Mills. I did four years in government; you’ve also done four years. They should present their track record, and we’ll also present ours so that Ghanaians can compare. That comparison, the NPP is not courageous enough to do.”

In his speech, Mahama highlighted the significant projects initiated by Nkrumah that continue to benefit the country today, emphasizing the need for a more realistic and fair comparison of achievements.

He called on the NPP to focus on a more recent benchmark if they truly wanted to engage in a meaningful evaluation of their governance.