Former Government Spokesperson on Governance and Security, Dr. Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, has defended Dr. Stephen Amoah, known as ‘Sticka’, following backlash over his alleged comments that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) lost the 2024 general elections due to the Islamic faith of the then NPP flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.
The comment, which has sparked outrage among sections of the NPP and the broader Muslim community, has been widely condemned, with many party stalwarts calling for a formal apology.
However, speaking on Morning Starr with Naa Dedei Tettey on Monday, June 23, Dr. Boakye-Danquah dismissed the criticisms, arguing that Dr. Amoah’s comments had been taken out of context.
“I was in Kumasi, I was at a programme where Honorable Dr Stephen Amoah, made those comments. And I think that his comments have been taken out of context. Absolutely,” Dr. Boakye-Danquah explained.
“The real issues are that we need to look at the data from the 2024 general election.”
He revealed that in the 2024 elections, the NPP lost the majority of votes in Zongo communities across the country, with the exception of Winneba.
These communities, he noted, are predominantly Muslim.
Dr. Boakye-Danquah compared this outcome to the 2020 elections, where President Nana Akufo-Addo, despite not being from the north, performed significantly better in those areas.
“The 2024 general election, the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party that stood for us, lost all the zongos in the country with the exception of Winneba. All the zongos are populated largely by Muslims. When you compare that to the 2020 election, which President Akufo-Addo stood, President Akufo-Addo had more votes, even as a southerner, from the north. And so, if you’re looking at the data, and it is the real data that might inform every single person’s decision in aligning to a particular candidate towards this election,” he added.
He further stressed that the NPP remains committed to inclusiveness, highlighting that the party unanimously elected Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as the first Muslim flagbearer of the NPP in the Fourth Republic.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Hamdia Mohammed
