Ghana’s former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, may be on a ‘wild goose chase’ in her campaign to become the First Vice-Chairperson of her husband’s party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Even though Nana Konadu has stepped up her campaign to win the position, NDC General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu-Nketia popularly called General Mosquito, has dropped a bombshell saying that the former First Lady is campaigning for an ‘alien’ position; one that does not exist in the party.

This announcement comes after Mrs. Rawlings and other party top gurus who publicly declared that they would contest various executive positions within the party were accused of flouting the NDC’s regulations by commencing their campaigns ahead of December 1- the date officially allowed for campaign to commence.

Mrs Rawlings, who is also the President of 31st December Women’s Movement, was in the Eastern region this week, canvassing for votes while meeting party people.

Asiedu-Nketia had told journalists on Tuesday in Accra that the NDC does not have anything like the rank of vice chairpersons into 1st, 2nd, 3rd, et cetera positions, but what pertains, according to him, is that all vice chairpersons in the party are considered as having equal status and they are subordinates of the chairman who assigns any of them duties as and when necessary.

He said the same arrangement pertains in all other deputy positions within the party, including that of Deputy General Secretaries.

The General Secretary indicated that all incumbent Ministers of State, MPs, District Chief Executives and Council of State Members who wish to contest for posts within the party must first resign their current positions.

Meanwhile, the former First Lady is continuing with her lively campaign which seems to have gained the endorsement of many party members.

The comments from Asiedu-Nketia comes at a time his party is perceived as going through a power struggle between party-founder, Jerry Rawlings, and President Atta Mills, who rode to power on the wings of the NDC.

Though the President is running around the country telling Ghanaians he is ‘in charge’, he is certainly not in control of his party and DAILY GUIDE has information that the little influence with which he cuddles himself in the NDC is even being pulled from under his feet.

Jerry John Rawlings is said to have sworn to ensure that the President becomes immaterial in the party and that no ‘Atta-Mills loyalist’ takes up any executive position at the national, regional or constituency level of the party. Even the NDC foreign branches have not been left out in the power struggle that is obviously going well for Rawlings and his group.

The tango has been extended even to current Ministers in government and a number of them still pledge their allegiance to Jerry Rawlings.

The ultimate agenda, reports say, is to ensure Prof. Mills does not win the next NDC presidential primaries, as his style of Presidency and selection of government appointees has not pleased the powers that be within the party.

The good old Prof. may end up being a one-term President as a more ‘favored child’ from the founder’s stable may be pegged against him.

To make matters worse, his own Vice President, John Mahama, is said to have an eye for the Presidency and is alleged to be sponsoring a few of his loyalists to take up executive positions in the party, such as his spokesperson, John Jinapor, who is nursing the ambition to succeed Haruna Iddrisu, MP for Tamale South and Minister of Communications, as the NDC Youth Organiser.

Reports say the ‘Operation Cut Mills off’ is believed to be a brainchild of Jerry Rawlings and was conceived after President Mills decided to ‘be his own man’ so as to probably purge himself of the belief that he is Rawlings’ ‘poodle’; an otherwise well-intended agenda that has made him bite the very fingers that fed him and a step towards committing political suicide.

DAILY GUIDE can report that it is for this reason that no other person than Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings has started campaigning for the first vice-chairmanship position of the party.

Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, perceived as a dye-in-the-wool Rawlings loyalist, has also made his intentions clear to contest for the position of 2nd vice chairman and interestingly, Nana Konadu has been quick to jump to his defence after the party gave hints that he may be penalized for starting his campaign and passing ‘unpleasant comments’ about persons in the current administration.

She had explained that what Spio was reported to have done or said was in tandem with the pulse of the rank and file of party members, thus he has committed no crime.

The NDC goes to congress in January 2010 to elect new party officers or renew their tenure of office and reports say the founder would file a candidate against any candidate whose loyalty to him is in doubt.

Though current National Chairman, Dr Kwabena Adjei, has not really stepped on the toes of the founder, he is said to be a little too liberal for Rawlings’ taste and therefore, the search for a replacement is on course.

General Secretary Asiedu-Nketia himself may have candidates competing against him from the Rawlings camp if he attempts to seek a renewal of his mandate.