Majority Leader of Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, says he stands by his recent statements about leading New Patriotic Party Member, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko.
According to the majority leader, he has received a text message from Mr Otchere-Darko following his public outburst, however, he is not ready to respond to the message.
“I have seen Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko’s text message to me, but l have not responded and don’t think l will respond. Many of my party folks and colleagues have spoken with me and I wouldn’t want to escalate matters. Let me however state that I stand by what l have said. I won’t add on, neither will l take some out,” he told Neat FM in an interview.
The reaction by the majority leader follows a response by Mr Otchere-Darko to Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu’s outburst in a recent interview with Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM.
Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko in a Facebook post refuted claims that he is on record to have accused Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu as being the ringleader of the anti-Ofori-Atta NPP MPs who are seeking the dismissal of the finance minister.
The majority leader in a recent interview with Kumasi-based Sompa FM expressed anger over some allegations levelled against him by Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko.
According to the Member of Parliament for Suame, Mr Otchere-Darko has wrongly accused him of being the mastermind behind some NPP MPs demanding the sacking of Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
“From nowhere we hear Gabby Otchere-Darko on his Asaase Radio accusing me of instigating what was happening, for what? What do I stand to gain from that?” he retorted.
The majority leader questioned the authority of the cousin of the finance minister for levelling such allegations against him.
“There are people who would rather want to cause disintegration whiles you are committed to integrating. But now this has brought about another sense of anger. That Gabby Otchere-Darko, who does he think he is? I serve Akufo-Addo and I serve the party as well as the government… when we talk about the government itself what is your locus to be accusing me of being an instigator?” the majority leader questioned.
The majority leader noted that it rather had to take his intervention to instil calm when a group of MPs in the NPP made public demands for the dismissal of the finance minister.
Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu who also doubles as the Minister for Parliamentary Business further accused Gabby of sponsoring a contestant against him in the 2016 primaries of the NPP noting that he failed in his agenda.
“You (Gabby) are the same person who wrote something for someone to publish on his radio station that I will lose if I contest for re-election hence my saying that I will not contest again. Gabby Otchere-Darko have you contested an election before? They are the same people who sponsored people to contest against me in 2016, it didn’t work for them.”
According to the majority leader, Gabby Otchere-Darko accused him of instigating calls for the finance minister’s sacking just so the leader of government business in parliament can be considered as a replacement for the under fire Ken Ofori-Atta.
But according to Gabby, he has never made any such allegations against the majority leader.
“I have listened to excerpts of the interview of Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, on Sompa Radio, claiming “I had gone on Asaase Radio to allege that he was the ringleader behind the NPP MPs calling for the resignation of the Finance Minister…”
“I have since sent him a message on this denying same. But, I consider it necessary to also put my side out publicly.
“I have said no such thing on Asaase Radio or any other radio station or media house, whether on-air, online, or in print, either directly or indirectly. Indeed, my position, so far, on this issue in Parliament within the Majority Caucus, has been to deliberately stay away from commenting on it publicly,” Gabby Otchere-Darko stated categorically on November 15.
