DECLARATION OF PROF. YAKUBU SAAKA AS A CANDIDATE FOR THE LEADERSHIP FLAG-BEARERSHIP OF THE PEOPLES NATIONAL CONVENTION (PNC) FOR THE 2008 NATIONAL ELECTION IN GHANA

VENUE - THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS CENTRE

TIME & DATE - 10:00 A.M., MONDAY, JULY 23, 2007

Ladies and gentlemen of the press, colleagues and friends. For those of you who do not know me, I am Dr. Yakubu Saaka, former Dep. Foreign Minister of Ghana (3rd Republic) and currently a Professor of Political Science and Chairman of the Political Committee of the Peoples National Convention (PNC). The purpose of this gathering is for me to formally announce that I will be a candidate for the leadership and flag-bearership of the PNC at the forthcoming National Congress of the Party.

I put myself forth because I think I have the experience, capacity and capability to provide the kind of leadership that will propel the party, the Nkrumaist project and the entire nation forward. More particularly, I see myself as the candidate for all progressives, the disenfranchised and marginalized, most especially among our youth and the myriad of civil society organizations (mainly of the female gender) that sincerely believe they are being ignored or patronized by the state. In other words I see myself as a representative of the mmobrowa.

In recent months it may have seemed to many people in the country that not very much is heard from the PNC and the vast majority of the little that is coming out is about internecine squabbles. Thus, among other things, today’s event is to demonstrate that our Party is alive and kicking and like all of the major political groupings in this crucial election season, we are seriously engaged in the process of reorganizing our structures and putting in place the mechanisms that will enable us to play a significant role in Decision 2008. Although I am, at the moment the only one who has openly declared an intention to run I want to assure you that in due course several other leading members of the Party will follow suit. To maintain the democratic tradition that we come from, we will ensure that all the elective executive positions in the party are open to all eligible comers.

As leader and flag-bearer of the Party I will assiduously work to enhance our profile throughout the length and breadth of the country. I will definitely visit all the 10 regions and possibly all the 230 constituencies to carry our message of change and development to the people. In order to do this efficaciously the Party will need to be much better resourced than it has been in the past. I want to assure all our members that should I be given the nod, my number one mission will be to bring to an end, within reason, the logistical nightmare we have been laboring under in the last few electoral cycles. We all know, as the great Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah emphasized, that organization is everything. But he himself recognized that in order to be the most effective organizer you can be, you need to have appropriate resources. This is why we are pledging to make this an important aspect of our responsibility as leader.

Aside from my abiding interest in the rejuvenation of the PNC, another thing I am deeply passionate about is what I refer to as the Nkrumaist Project. By this I mean the desire, wish and necessity for maintaining Nkrumaism as a viable and relevant political legacy and tradition in Ghana. Everywhere one goes in this country the constant refrain among discerning political observers is that the only way we as Nkrumaist can make ourselves viable alternatives to the current giants of Ghanaian politics (NPP and NDC) is if the disparate groups within our camp could come together to form one cohesive unit. And yet, for a variety of sometimes inane reasons, we have been unable to resolve our differences. There are many who are of the opinion that for this electoral cycle it is perhaps too late to consummate any such agreement. I am not one of them. As a Political Scientist by training I know that a year can be an eternity in the political life of a nation. That is why I am still hopeful that we might yet find our way out of this quagmire. I would like to serve notice that as leader of the PNC I would use my leverage and (as the Americans say) do my darndest to bring about the unification of the Nkrumaist forces as quickly as possible.

For those who care to know I come from a long and distinguished line of Nkrumaist activist. My father, Mr. B. A. Saaka, who is still alive and lives in my home town of Bole, was one of the first DCs appointed by Nkrumah in the late 50s. My uncle and political mentor, Mr. E. A. Mahama (the father of honourable John Mahama) was as well a Minister in Nkrumah’s government. I myself followed in their footsteps by becoming the first of the 2nd generation Nkrumaist in our constituency to be elected to parliament and to serve as a Minister. In light of all of this, I know these forebears and posterity will not forgive me for not keeping the Nkrumaist candle burning.

Ancillary to this aspect of the Nkrumaist project I have just discussed is the equally deep passion that I have for Pan Africanist Politics. I think, as an Nkrumaist party the PNC should (as should the other parties in the family) capitalize on our Pan African legacy. The Osagyefo did a lot to define and project the African Unity perspective of Pan Africanism. And as we could see from the recent AU summit held in Accra, many of the leaders from the different parts of the continent acknowledged this and paid tribute to the memory of the man. Indeed, many of them (particularly from Southern Africa) recognized the debt they owed the Osagyefo in their struggle for self determination. In view of this, it will be fairly easy for us to cultivate them as ideological allies. I think it is unfortunate that much like in 1963 many of the leaders assembled in Accra were unwilling to make a commitment to Unity in 2007. This tells us that the road to African Unity will continue to be long and arduous and that as individuals and parties with the kind of orientation we have, we should endeavor to be strong advocates of the cause.

At this point it might be useful to provide a brief synopsis of my background. As previously stated, I am from Bole in the Northern Region. I received my secondary education at Achimota School after which I proceeded to the University of Ghana where I read Political Science for my 1st Degree and a Masters in African Politics. I left for the United States after Legon in 1972 ostensibly to pursue my terminal degree. I enrolled for the PhD in Political Science at Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, Ohio in the fall of 1973 and completed my program in December 1976. I returned to Ghana in 1978 to lecture at Legon. With the return to constitutional rule in 1979 as mentioned earlier, I run for parliament on the ticket of the PNP. My job as an MP was however quite brief because I was appointed by Dr. Limann to serve as Deputy Foreign Minister. In that capacity I represented Ghana in a number of International forums including the UN General Assembly and UNESCO. Apart from representing Ghana at the wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles in 1981 perhaps the next memorable activity I was involved was when I led a UN/OAU delegation to the Gulf States in November 1981 where we were able to raise about $60m for African Refugees. The irony of this last event was that barely a month later following the overthrow of our Government in December 1981 I became a political refugee myself.

In 1992 when the country once again returned to constitutional rule, I worked very closely with Dr. Limann and campaigned tirelessly with him when he was leader and flag-bearer of the PNC. In 1996 when he stepped down I believe I was one of the 2 leading candidates to succeed him. In their wisdom the party decided to go with Dr. Edward Mahama and just as I did with his predecessor I have worked closely with him as well. Since, I am not privy to what the good Dr’s plans are I cannot presume to speak for him. But whatever it is I think this is the most appropriate time for me to seek the flag-bearership of the party against whomever.

Since the purpose of this gathering is simply to introduce myself to you, I think the broad outline of what I am about which I have provided this morning will be sufficient for the time being. As the process continues, greater detail and clarification about the policies I intend to implement will be provided.

Thank you for listening to me.

LONG LIVE THE PNC, LONG LIVE THE NKRUMAIST PROJECT, LONG LIVE GHANA.

Yakubu Saaka