Opinions of Saturday, 21 January 2012

Columnist: Akosomo, Kwadwo Nyantakyi

NDC without Rawlings and facing annihilation in 2012.

With the discord in NDC it is safe for political analysts to project Ghanaians will usher in NPP as the next government of the country in 2013, with Akuffo Addo as the President. The partisan nature of Ghanaian politics will never change and will remain polarized between the Danquah/ Busia vrs Nkrumah traditions. No matter what the other party does much can influence any significant shift to the other side. In this regard each party needs solid unity at its base to remain in serious competition. Based on historical facts most members in NDC are Nkrumaist, and NPP are the former.

NPP is solidified more than ever to win the 2012 General Election, but NDC remains disorganized and would need miracle to compete in 2012. Nevertheless, the bad news for NDC is that the most influential person in the party, J.J. Rawlings who led the political campaigns that won the2008 general election for NDC and Mills as president has been ostracized by unsavoury characters whose lack of respect has rendered the founder of the party spineless. The support base of NDC has therefore dwindled as they have killed Rawlings “body leaving his head.”

While as NPP has spent the last 3 years solidifying to contest the 2012 general election, NDC members have used same years annoying its own people. Rawlings, who is the heartthrob of the party, has been delivered catastrophic low blows by his own party members and the members. The members left now to campaign for the party are “dead horses” and “train wrecks” who cannot even win primaries in their own constituencies. The rejection of the president’s own confidant Kwesi Ahwoi is sure sign of impending annihilation.

Furthermore, Ghanaians are missing the openness and good governance of J.A.Kuffour and are reminiscing his socio-economic vision which was encapsulated in the Five Priority Areas, the pursuit of good governance, modernization of agriculture for rural development, private sector participation, enhanced social services and vigorous infrastructural development.

Mills governance has not been the best; he could not translate his long time professorial experience into any meaningful governance. Grand deception, vain promises, “squabbles and squandermania” have been plaguing his government. Unemployment continues to increase; corruption and shady deals have been ongoing. Ghana is in economic mess as Mill’s government has over borrowed its limit and cannot meet the annual obligation, and consequently Ghana is ranking low on the credit scale according to recent IMF report. The environment has not been taken care of, the stench of Accra the capital of Ghana is unbearable, and cholera outbreak that killed over 60 people and infected 20,000 others was not any medical emergency to Mills government.

These short comings and many others is what pushed Nana Konadu Agyemang to vie for the leadership of NDC. Under our political dispensation any citizen of good standing has the right to compete for any public office and this right is what Nana Konadu Agyemang exercised. This enterprise of Konadu Agyemang encountered a boisterous and tempestuous behaviour of some NDC simpletons and their harsh description of her was hard for anyone to swallow. Rawlings was not totally in agreement with his wife’s decision to contest for the NDC leadership and as a good husband came to her defence but the mouths of buffoons have no holds barred - Rawlings was washed wet and dry leaving him impotent and sleeping on king size bed helpless. Rawlings also fought back referred to NDC members as “greedy bustards who have steered our nation in the wrong direction”.

Furthermore, the way NDC members have acted appears as if they came to power with any significant majority. Sooner had they assumed the leadership of the country did they forget that their less than 1% slim majority was disputable and could have thrown any uncivilized country into chaos. It must be noted that Nana Akuffo Addo won the first round with 49.13 % and Mills gained 47.92 %. Meanwhile the votes of Asokwa constituency a strong hold of NPP with over 120,000 votes was nullified due to late call. In the second round NPP candidate, Nana Akuffo-Addo lost the elections in a closely contested run off, with Akuffo-Addo receiving 49.77% of the votes, versus 50.23% of the votes going to Atta Mills, the NDC flag bearer. The peace loving people of Ghana from all the parties encouraged NPP to ensure fair play and justice by accepting defeat and same was complied with. This alone should have made members of NDC wary of their nefarious activities and utterances, but cheap popularity and opportunism did not prevent them from identifying their slimy self. The problem is NDC has so many loud mouths spewing uncontrolled incendiary venom on Ghanaians. Just recently Okudjeto inferred the Andanis who are grieving the death of their King to go and F... themselves. They have dished lot of painful low blows to many people and the wrath of the people will crush NDC into oblivion in 2012 general election.

With all these odds facing NDC, Asiedu Nketiah, the general secretary stated, “We will not beg Rawlings to campaign for the party in 2012”. Well, Mr Nketiah for your information, you don’t just need to beg Rawlings but you will need to gather all your “train wrecks” led by President Mills to crawl before Rawlings and his wife for their help so that your party does not sink into oblivion. I will be back next week with why Rawlings should not campaign for NDC but until then ciao.

Kwadwo Nyantakyi Akosomo

Toronto (Now vacationing in Ghana)