Former President John Dramani Mahama has stood by the ‘do or die’ comments he made when speaking about the lessons NDC had learnt from the 2020 elections.
Mr. Mahama made the statement on Tuesday, September 7, 2021, during his Thank You tour in the Bono East Region.
“We have learnt our lessons from happenings during the 2020 polls. The 2024 elections will be won or lost at the polling station. It will be do-or-die at the polling stations. The right thing must be done during the polls. We will win the elections at the polling station and won’t wait for collation centre results nor petition the Supreme Court if aggrieved,”.
The comments have since sparked controversy. However, Mr. Mahama has stood by his comments.
On Wednesday, September 8, 2021 in an interview on Moonlite FM in Sunyani, Mr. Mahama said that the comments were not a premise for violence.
Mr. Mahama criticized those equating his remarks with President Akufo-Addo’s ‘all die be die’ comment and insisted that the comments do not mean the same thing.
It’s different from ‘All die be die’. ‘All die be die’ is broken English [or] pidgin jargon that we say but this, ‘Do or die’, go open a dictionary and see. And I say it’s a do-or-die affair.
“NDC must man the polling station, they must man the collation centres, make sure the pink sheets are correct, make sure we get the right results and everything because maybe someone else will be flagbearer. They will choose Supreme Court but if I become flagbearer I am not going to the Supreme Court.
“We must win at the polling station or collation centre.”
By: Jerrubbaal Baiden