The Nana Akufo-Addo campaign team is mounting pressure on former President Kufuor to publicly clarify the state of his relationship with the NPP presidential hopeful after recent publication claimed he was bitter.

Maame Afua Akoto, member of the campaign team, told UTV last Wednesday that Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has defended his relationship with the former president anytime claims surface that it is frosty. The team believes that it is time for the former President to speak to this claim in the firm hope that it will quell rumours more effectively.

Former President John Agyekum Kufuor is currently in the United States attending the United Nations General Assembly.

The call on the former president is informed by statements made by an NPP MP Dr Richard Anane during the launch of ‘Alan for President 2016’ campaign.

Dr. Anane was a former Minister of Health under President Kufuor and is said to be close to the former president.

Making a case for why Alan should persevere despite calls on him to step down for Nana Addo, the former Health Minister said in a similar move was made in 1998 when Nana Addo’s men schemed to get candidate Kufuor replaced as the NPP presidential candidate. But Kufuor went on to win the presidential elections in 2000. Alan should therefore not be discouraged by such calls, Dr. Anane urged.

But his utterances have been interpreted as a sign of simmering bitterness and bad blood between former President Kufuor and Nana Akufo-Addo.

Speaking to the issue, Maame Afua Akoto urged the former President to take note of Dr. Richard Anane’s comments to either validate or reject those claims.

Although Nana Akufo-Addo’s team takes cognizance of Kufuor’s support on the campaign trail during the 2012 presidential elections, the recent comments by Dr. Richard Anane only goes to recreate a bad public perception.

She accused Alan’s camp of mudslinging Nana Akufo-Addo. This strategy, she pointed out, was the cause of Nana’s defeat in two presidential contests.

In an attempt to explain frequent attacks on Akufo-Addo, Afua said Akufo-Addo’s forgiving and all-embracing attitude is a weakness that is feeding such attacks.

This ability to overlook a wrong done against him, is detailed in the book ‘Chasing the Elephant into the Bush; the Politics of complacency’, she said.

Due to this “weakness”, opponents, she observed can always attack with the assurance that Nana Akufo-Addo will offer forgiveness and reconciliation.

Akufo-Addo has a "big heart".