The Mahama 2024 Campaign has issued a stern warning to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) against the destruction and obstruction of billboards belonging to its flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, and other National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidates. The campaign team condemned the recent actions of the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) Chief Executive, who allegedly pulled down a billboard of Mr. Mahama, mounted by Alliance Media in Tema.
In a statement released on Friday, the Mahama 2024 Campaign described the act as “unacceptable” and a “needless provocative attempt to raise the political temperature in the country.” The statement emphasized that Alliance Media, a legally registered Ghanaian advertising business, has full permission to mount Out-of-Home (OOH) and Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) sites nationwide, and dutifully pays the required annual fees to the TMA and other assemblies.
The campaign expressed hope that Alliance Media would take legal action against the TMA for this breach but also issued a direct warning to the TMA chief executive and the NPP. The campaign team stressed that such actions, which could lead to political clashes and violence, are detrimental to the growth of Ghana’s democracy.
The statement also highlighted a similar incident in the Ablekuma North constituency, where the NPP blocked a billboard mounted by the NDC parliamentary candidate. Despite these provocations, the Mahama 2024 Campaign noted that institutions like the National Peace Council, along with religious and civil society organizations, are monitoring the situation.
The campaign concluded with a firm caution that such acts will no longer be tolerated and hinted at possible retaliatory measures if they persist. They urged the NPP to conduct their campaign peacefully and respect the rights of other parties to advertise their political candidates and messages.
“Violence and destruction of property have no place in our political discourse,” the statement read. “As President Mahama noted in an opinion piece on Tuesday, there must be ‘peace and decorum in our political discourse, especially in the run-up to high-stakes elections such as those we face in December this year.'”
The Mahama 2024 Campaign’s call for peaceful campaigning comes as the country gears up for what promises to be a highly contested election in December.
