The 2008 presidential candidate of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, has condemned out-rightly the spectacle that ensued between members of President Mills’ delegation and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) flag bearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his entourage, at the Cape Coast Afahye durbar grounds on Saturday, September 4, 2010.

According to him “…What happened at the Cape Coast Afahye durbar grounds on Saturday, September 4, 2010 must be condemned by everyone with the national interest and the preservation of our traditional values and culture at heart.”

Dr. Nduom made the statement in a press statement released yesterday in Accra. The incident, he noted, was nothing new regarding the kind of political rivalry between the two political parties – the NDC and the NPP.

Against this background, he charged the Oguaa Traditional Authorities not to allow government of the day to dictate how a festival of such importance should be organised.

“My suggestion in 2008 and now in 2010 is that our Traditional Authorities must not allow the government of the day to dictate what should happen during these festivals to them. Governments come and go. Our traditions must continue. It is the responsibility of the Traditional Authorities to seat ALL dignitaries properly and together using an arrangement that recognizes both the leaders of the party in power, opposition party leaders and business, religious and general society leaders. Once our chiefs and queenmothers give in to the politicians, their integrity suffers. Our authorities should plan better not just to receive our donations but to make everyone welcome and help make our country a united one,” Dr. Nduom suggested.

He recounted a similar incident that happened in 2008 at the same grounds when Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor was the president, which the NPP, the ruling party at the time, saw nothing wrong with.

“It happened at the same grounds in 2008. The President of the Republic of Ghana then was John Agyekum Kufuor. His party people did not see anything wrong with what was done to leaders of opposition parties there then.

This commotion, Dr. Nduom stressed, has once again happened at a time that Mr. John Evans Atta Mills of the NDC is the President. He expressed that it was sad that members of the ruling NDC do not see anything wrong with what happened on Saturday.

He lamented over the inability of the Oguaa Traditional Authorities to ensure that there is “fairness and independence of the custodians of our culture and traditional Ghanaian way of life.” “The Oguaa Traditional Authorities were there in 2008 and also on Saturday, September 4, 2010. In my view, they did nothing to make fairness and the independence of the custodians of our culture and traditional Ghanaian way of life prevail,” stressed Dr. Nduom.

According to him, he was at the Afahye durbar grounds in 2008 when there was chaos. “I was there at the Afahye durbar grounds in 2008. There was chaos. I was made to wait at the entrance to the park when it appeared that the then President was making his way there. Even though we had made prior arrangements for proper seating, we had to struggle for a place to sit and our area was overtaken by boisterous supporters of other parties and their “macho men.”

He went on to add that though he complained about his mistreatment, no one at the time listened to him. “I saw the commotion that ensued between the security people who accompanied then President Kufuor and was nearly crushed in the process. I was deeply embarrassed. I complained publicly but no one paid any attention to me then. So I resolved to stay away from the durbar of a festival I have loved since my childhood until some same arrangement is made to accommodate all political party leaders and dignitaries peacefully,” he recounted.

He said “During the 2008 campaign, some prominent chiefs who are celebrated in the country today, made it impossible for me as a Presidential Candidate to pay courtesy calls on them. Others received me with great reluctance and after many obstacles had been placed in my way, gave us such short notice that we could not gather enough leaders from my party to be part of our delegation. It was worse in some communities as we were made aware that we were not welcome there,” he said.

He continued that many of the measures taken in the First Republic were to make sure that ethnic or tribal affiliations would be respected but become second to our identity as one people with a common destiny in a nation called Ghana.

“Our education system helped and so did the CPP Administration’s sharing of factories, schools, roads and other social infrastructure. Ghana was for Ghanaians and we were on the road to becoming a proud people where ethnic origin would be a secondary matter,” he noted.

Dr. Nduom also bemoaned the fact that tribalism has made its way into the country’s body politic. This development, he described as “offensive and dangerous to our survival as a nation.” “We are now coupling insane political partisanship with tribalism and putting it on display during our traditional festivals. Some of our chiefs are kneeling in front of the government of the day to beg for development that is their due. In the process, they sometimes become blind to the fact that they should be there for all of their people not just those who happen to be in power.

Our traditional leaders must demonstrate independence from the political class and embrace all to affirm their individual and collective identity. I want to be at the next Oguaa Fetu Afahye, Edina Bakatue, Homowo, Akuapem Odwira, the festivals of the Dagombas and others and feel welcome and proud to be a Ghanaian. I want to be safe in my own country and our Traditional Authorities must make this happen when we visit their towns and villages to celebrate and enjoy their culture and way of life,” asserted Dr. Nduom.

He therefore urged politicians in the country to appreciate the fact that “festivals, funerals, weddings and other social gatherings are just that – social gatherings.”

“They must not use these occasions to divide our people. Specifically, the NDC and the NPP must not be allowed to turn our traditional festivals into arenas for divisive political football,” he cautioned.