Presidential aide in charge of Government Communications, Dr Samuel Ayeh, has criticised former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for not participating in the national clean-up exercise organised in the aftermath of the June 29 floods.
Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show, Dr Ayeh questioned Dr Bawumia’s commitment to addressing the country’s recurring flooding problem, arguing that the clean-up exercise presented an opportunity for him to demonstrate leadership beyond visiting affected communities.
“I didn’t see Dr. Bawumia taking part in the clean-up exercise today. If he’s genuinely concerned about the flood situation, why didn’t he participate in the clean-up exercise? It appears they were more interested in political propaganda than in helping to solve the problem,” he said.
According to him, the former Vice President had recently toured flood-hit areas to assess the extent of the damage, but should have also joined efforts aimed at preventing future flooding.
“Recently he was in areas where the floods impacted. The whole idea was to assess the impact of the flooding, so I thought if he is so worried about the consequences of what causes the flooding, then when measures are put in place to avoid it, you support them,” he stated.
Dr Ayeh argued that participating in the nationwide sanitation exercise would have been a stronger demonstration of commitment to tackling the flooding challenge.
“If you are so minded about getting your political supporters to go and see the extent of the floods and now government has taken action with the national clean-up exercise, I think that was one of the biggest opportunities for Bawumia to demonstrate true commitment to the fight against the floods,” he said.
He maintained that Dr Bawumia’s absence undermined the message conveyed during his visit to affected communities.
“I think he has lost that opportunity. I don’t see any principle in what he did. It was pure politics when he went to visit the flood areas,” he alleged.
Dr Ayeh further called on Ghanaians to demand consistency from political leaders, regardless of their political affiliation.
“I urge everyone to criticise such conduct by politicians. As politicians, we must be consistent and principled,” he said.
He expressed disappointment that Dr Bawumia did not join President John Dramani Mahama and other participants in the exercise.
“When the time came for true action towards what he believed to represent, the opportunity was lost. I am very disappointed. It would have been nice to see him along with the President cleaning the drains today,” he added.
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