Democracy Misunderstood: Alex Amoako-Attah and the Politics of Imaginary Enemies

In his response to Mr. Rockson Adofo’s article titled “Is NDC that Evil,” which was published on Ghanaweb on 28th February, 2008, Mr. Alex Amoako-Attah, a respected commentator, and an NPP loyalist, threatened that “If these nation wreckers should carry out their threat, be assured that the Constitution will be suspended. But this terrorist organisation will be dealt with such brutality and overwhelming force, the like of which, has and will never be seen in Ghana politics.” He also stated that from what he has “gathered, the Executives of this terrorist organisation and that of the CJA, will be put under surveillance for weeks around the clock before the Election Day. So in the event they commit the fatal mistake of giving orders for their minions to pour onto the streets, not one soul of the leadership of the Criminal Organisation known as the NDC, will survive the carnage that will be unleashed on them.”

In his final comment, Mr. Amoako-Attah stated that “Kufour does not need anybody's mandate to rule again but when the Constitution is suspended, he will still be in charge of the country until sanity prevails in Ghana. This is when Ghanaians shall see the other side of him. Fellow Country men, be assured that Ghana will never be like Kenya or any other war-torn country in West Africa. Because there will be a bloody pre-emptive strike on these anarchists and saboteurs before they can even organise.”

I find Mr. Amoako-Attah’s belligerence, and his death wish on the NDC leadership, to be very disturbing, and I fervently pray that his comment is not the official position of the current administration. If history is a measuring stick by which we measure political developments in civilized democratic societies, then Mr. Amoako-Attah should know that it is not in the best interest of a democratically-elected president to suspend his nation’s constitution as a way of extending his stay in power.

On a more serious note, Mr. Amoako-Attah’s comments underscore the stomach-turning state of our nation’s democracy, and the predisposition of some of our so-called democratically-elected leaders to tinker with the nation’s supreme law(s) of the land. While the UPists reviled Dr. Kwame Nkrumah for suspending the nation’s Constitution, some members of the NPP, a political offshoot of the UP, think they have the divine right to subvert our nation’s constitutional provisions to maintain their throttlehold on power.

What is the value of political pluralism if citizens cannot express their thoughts on national issues that affect their daily experiential? Where is freedom of speech when today’s victors equate ethnocentricity with nationalism and hound their enemies like tuberculoid lepers? Why is it acceptable, for some NPP loyalists, to treat Chairman Rawlings as a fugitive, yet see the scrutiny of Nana Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei-Tutu II, and other NPP functionaries, as a taboo? Despite the façade of constitutional democracy, many Ghanaians are aware of backdoor attempts to centralize ethnocentric politics (i.e. Akanocracy). The preceding is part of the “Mate Me Ho” and “Ye Gye Ye Man” grand-vision. Well, I thought, the diminutive kingdom joined Ghana in 1902 after becoming a British protectorate and is subject to the Constitution of the Republic.

I also find it equally interesting that Mr. Amoako-Atta would use the term “surveillance” loosely. A little research on Ghanaian security studies will tell Mr. Amoako-Attah that our nation has one of the lousiest security networks in Africa. If the preceding was not true, how could a shipload of cocaine be able to breach Ghana’s territorial waters without detection by our nation’s “state-of-the-art security” agencies? Did surveillance elude our reputed security agencies on the night of unloading the cocaine ship? Where were the nation’s security personnel, and their surveillance techniques, when Dr. “Panie” Anane cruised into Ms. Alexandria O’Brian’s passage while he was attending an International Conference on HIV/AIDS?

I must tell Mr. Amoako-Attah that some of the successes of our nation’s security organizations were made possible through transnational cooperation and not bellicose partisan statements. We are still waiting for the nation’s surveillance unit to provide us with evidence on the allegations that Chairman Rawlings traveled to Venezuela and the Congo to seek assistance to destabilize Ghana. In the field of security, surveillance hardly works if the surveiled gecko learns to break its tail to dazzle the surveiling cat. Surveillance can barely achieve its intended objectives if the target is schooled in counter and inverse surveillance methods as our nation’s history would tell Mr. Amoako-Attah.

Lately, there are many NPP loyalists who would argue that our nation is seeing better days under the current administration. While I respect their opinion, there are some who would also agree with me that a system of politics that submits to introspective analysis denies the subjective analyst the right to interrogate lapses in the government. In the interest of our dearest nation, let’s engage in healthy exchanges of ideas. We must embrace plural perspectives irrespective of one’s political affiliation. We must tell the incumbent to allow marginalized political parties to critique the symbolic tokenisms it has instituted to stifle simmering agitations against the growing gulf between the rich and poor.

Our nation does not need another Kenyan-style state-sponsored terrorism. We cannot afford to see(ing) our loved ones become victims of ethnic cleansing. The ultimate test for our democracy is the ability of Ghanaians to propose development-oriented issues, and not needless sword-rattling. Let’s encourage discussions that send a message to our leaders that democratic tyranny would not be tolerated. Let’s s address issues that speak to, and empower, the grassroots to demand change, if need be, at the upper tiers of power.

Our nation deserves ministers who do not indulge in narcotics, and “atupa” calisthenics while attending international conferences. We need a leader who is prepared to sacrifice friendship in the interest of the nation. We need politicians who condemn the depletion of the nation’ treasury and not spineless lyricists who sing the hymns of "sikadie amanbuo" with their “sikadicious” and the “cocaine-tontious” allies. “Yen Ara Ya Asase Ni, Eye Abuodidin Ema Yen……” Would they write to me to translate the preceding in English? Let’s wait and see the Badidoamelawo wag their tails in celestial joy because Obenewaa has written in Twi. . Hope all is well. Good day and cheers.