Member of Parliament for Mpraeso, Davis Ansah Opoku, popularly known as OPK, has denied claims that he made tribal comments against former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.
A viral screenshot from a WhatsApp group chat appeared to suggest that the lawmaker opposed the idea of a northerner leading the New Patriotic Party (NPP) into the 2028 general elections. The post has since drawn heavy backlash from a section of the public who have accused OPK of fanning tribal tensions within the NPP.
However, in a statement shared on his social media pages, OPK described the claims as “mischievous” and a “gross misrepresentation” of a private conversation.
“This publication is not only false but also a gross misrepresentation,” he said. “The suggestion that I objected to a northerner becoming flagbearer is completely unfounded.”
According to the MP, his original comment was in direct response to a post by a fellow group member, Tamimu, who himself is a northerner, and who questioned the viability of Hon. Bryan Acheampong’s presidential bid on the basis of regional succession. OPK said he referenced President John Mahama, also a northerner, to challenge what he interpreted as a flawed argument, and not to attack any ethnic group.
“It was never an attack on northerners; it was a rebuttal of a divisive and regionalist claim made by one of their own,” he explained.
OPK, in his post, also indicated that he holds Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia in high regard, just as he respects all the other qualified contenders within the NPP.
He also noted that every Ghanaian, irrespective of ethnicity or background, deserves the opportunity to serve, and also called for “focus on merit, unity, and competence rather than ethnocentric rhetoric.”
