Ghanaian voters must avoid the 'change trap' - Nigerian governor warns

A Nigerian governor, Peter Ayodele Fayose, is warning Ghanaians against voting for a change of government in upcoming polls asking them to stick with the incumbent John Dramani Mahama.

According to him, a year after Nigerians voted for change by kicking out Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government, they have regreted and the country have regressed, a situation Ghanaian voters should avoid.

‘’… by buying into the All Progressives Congress (APC) message of change, Nigerians are now facing a kind of hunger and suffering never experienced in the country in the last 30 years and Ghanaians must not fall into that kind of trap,’‘ he said.

... by buying into the All Progressives Congress (APC) message of change, Nigerians are now facing a kind of hunger and suffering never experienced in the country in the last 30 years and Ghanaians must not fall into that kind of trap.

“Ghanaians should know that the change in Nigeria brought hunger, suffering, disregard for the rule of law as well as arrest and detention of Nigerians without trial and be mindful of those preaching change to them,’‘ he added.

The governor of the southern Ekiti State, according to his publicity officer, was speaking during a visit by some members of the clergy from Ghana over the weekend.

Fayose, who is an avid critic of President Muhammadu Buhari, compared Ghana’s leading opposition leader, Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo to Buhari.

“Most importantly, the situation in Ghana at present is similar to that of Nigeria. Like President Mohammadu Buhari, opposition party, New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate, Nana Akufo-Addo has contested the presidency two times. This is the third time he is contesting. He is also 74 year-old.

‘‘Tell them to learn from Nigerians and reject those preaching message of change to them. They should hold on to the government that they have now and beware of a change that will take their country to economic recession,” he told his guests.

Ghana heads to the polls for general – presidential and parliamentary – elections on December 7. This will be the country’s seventh polls since the return to multi party democracy in 1992.

President John Dramani Mahama is running on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) as he seeks a second term. His main opponent is the opposition NPP’s Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who is standing for the third time having lost in 2008 and 2012.

There are five other candidates who qualified to run for the presidency. The Convention People’s Party (CPP) candidate Ivor Kobina Greenstreet and an independent presidential candidate Jacob Osei Yeboah.

A former first lady of Ghana, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, is also on the ballot as is one of Ghana’s illustrious businessmen, Papa Kwesi Ndoum, who has been in frontline politics for over 10 years now.